


In Another Life

by UmeUchiha



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Time Travel, F/M, Fanart, Slow Burn, Time Skips
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-12
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:00:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 63,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23611186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UmeUchiha/pseuds/UmeUchiha
Summary: This story begins with a girl who finds herself in a world from her childhood she thought was only fictional... Her peculiar entrance creates quite the stir, but not in the way she anticipated. Completed.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Original Female Character(s), Orochimaru (Naruto)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 85





	1. Here Comes the Sun

**Chapter 1 - Here Comes the Sun**

The Beatles

The girl known as Ren sat silently next to Haku and Zabuza's limp bodies and stared blankly ahead while rain sprinkled. The rain was warm and perhaps would have been a comfort in other circumstances, but there was nothing that could comfort the girl at that moment.

 _I couldn't stop it… Even with all my knowledge, I couldn't change anything…_ She thought to herself quietly. Her comrades, weary from battle, were also at a loss of words it seemed, although for different reasons. This was their first "real" mission and despite their strength, Ren recognized that they were, after all, only children. No one was spared injury, and in another world Ren would have described most of her team's wounds as "quite fatal". But she had learned that shinobi had an uncanny way of defying death by pure willpower alone.

Her eyes moved to Sasuke who stood solemnly a few feet away. She had thought he was dead only a few minutes before, but there he stood, and she wondered how he remained so composed and blasé to the surrounding circumstances.

She looked back to the dead who were beginning to grow cold. She had witnessed this scene before, or rather read it once or twice in years past. In those days she had cried for the heartbreaking final sacrifice of Haku and the forgiveness of Zabuza in his final moments. But this time she sat still, too overwhelmed at the reality and finality of this moment. This was no "story". She thought she had been in pain when she read it back then… how little she had known.

Ren's life had become a perpetual "Deja vu", her own personal Hell where she alone was cursed with this knowledge and seemed unable to use it for any good. Her eyes started to fill with tears. She blinked them away.

Their leader Kakashi was the first to break the silence. "Well… Let's give them a proper funeral. Naruto come help me with Haku…"

As they walked to the burial spot, one overlooking a hill if Ren remembered correctly, she continued to ponder her purpose in these events. She wondered why she had been brought to this world. Was she supposed to prevent something from happening? Or was she simply hallucinating somewhere in a mental facility about being in some old manga series... The thought made her feel ill.

She racked her brain for the last memory of the "old world" again. She had been walking home from the university's library, biochemistry book in hand, nothing out of the ordinary… And then nothing. No lights flashing- just blankness.

The next thing she knew she was waking up in some old fashioned hospital bed very confused. When she looked into the mirror she did not see twenty-two year old Karen, but rather a young teenage version of herself. Except that this teenager lacked the familiar scar above her right eyebrow from a dog bite in the third grade, and had much longer hair than she had ever grown. To say she was shocked wouldn't begin to cover it.

During that event she hadn't had much time at all before she was escorted by two odd, yet familiarly dressed men to see the 'Hokage'. She had hoped of course that it was all a big scam in the beginning. That the Hokage would throw off his cap and yell "Welcome to Comic Con!" or something of that nature, but that hadn't been the case. The third Hokage had been as serious and contemplative as he always had appeared in the manga. Much of their meeting had been in silence after having asked her the standard "get to know you/interrogation questions" while he flipped through an old file at his desk.

As she slugged through the rain her mind took her back to the details of that first day.

"How old are you?" The Hokage had asked. He looked at a picture of Karen in his hands. It was one that was in her backpack with her at the library the night before. She was hugging a roommate in the photo. The photo had been taken less than 2 weeks before.

"Twenty-two." She said. One of the men scoffed in the back. The Hokage revealed nothing and wrote something down in the file.

"Ka, Ren - are you aware of how you arrived here?" The Hokage said. She realized that he must have assumed that Ka was her surname.

"I was hoping you could tell me, sir." Karen had offered in reply.

He stared deeply into her eyes for a moment and then looked at his file again. "My men found you just inside the city limits. You caused quite the commotion in the trees, I hear… Several were knocked down when they found you laying there. They'd never seen anything like it." He looked to one of the men standing in the corner of the room.

"...Oh." Was all she could manage to say. Her heart sank. She had been hoping that he would have the answer to sending her home.

He waited a moment to reply, "Are you sure you don't remember anything?" His question felt to her as if it were loaded with something heavier than just her arrival here.

She looked him in the eyes. "I wish I did."

They sat in silence for a minute as he continued to stare into her eyes, measuring her integrity she supposed. Eventually she was escorted out and sent to a hotel of sorts for the next few days to await her results of the "trial".

On the fourth day relief finally came.

A knock was heard at the door.

"Come in." Karen had called.

She turned to face the man who had peeked his head in. He had a voluminous amount of gray hair, although the color was not from age (on the contrary he was quite young and handsome) and wore a very distinctive dark blue mask.

_Kakashi._

Karen couldn't help but stare just a bit too long. She had been in close contact with Kakashi Hatake for a couple days now, the two men who had initially escorted her were no longer assigned to her for reasons she did not know. Seeing him as a real person was still so odd. But there he was flesh and bone… not just pen and paper. And here she was staring, trying to rationalize this dream, but he was very real.

She looked away; after all it was rude to be prying into one's existence so early in the morning.

"Ah, Ren, the Hokage has made a conclusion."

"Right, I'm ready to go."

She followed the man out the door. He put his hands in his pockets and walked casually in front of her as they went outside. It wasn't too far of a walk, the Hokage had wanted to keep her close, but it still felt like an eternity. She wondered about having her fate in the palms of a man she did not believe actually existed.

They entered the building, and she could see the Third Hokage there, looking deep in thought as he mulled over various papers on his desk. As she stepped to walk in, Kakashi gave her a squinty masked smile.

"Good luck."

She returned the smile half-heartedly, and turned to face her fate.

Karen walked in the room and sat down quietly. There were four people in the room this time. None of which she recognized. The Hokage remained focused on whatever was occupying him, and didn't make any eye contact. She wondered if he knew she was even there.

After a long moment he spoke. "I have reached a conclusion regarding your... _peculiar_ entrance into our village."

Karen nodded.

"You understand that it is a security risk of ours to just let you go after something of this nature has occurred." He paused for effect. Karen's stomach clenched. "Although you do not appear overtly dangerous, we would like to monitor you for sometime. If your memory returns the information may be useful for our security. In the meantime, as you appear quite young, and have no friends or family in the nearby whereabouts, you may join our ninja academy class. If you acclimate well, you may even go on to become a shinobi of the hidden leaf village if you desire."

Ren could not remember what she felt at that moment, only that she had heard one man immediately object to such accommodations, wishing for Inoichi to take a look at her mind. His coworker murmured in support, citing that it would be a security risk to allow entry of a strange older child into the ninja academy. A single rebuke from the Hokage had silenced them, but Ren couldn't help but agree with the disapproving man. While the Hokage was a kind person she had never thought of him as being incautious. Although perhaps she was easiest to monitor in the academy she'd thought to herself... She'd looked into the third's eyes to gather his intentions, but they had remained a mystery to her. A crystal ball she could not read.

The Hokage had then closed his file and the matter was settled.

The next few days and weeks had been a blur. She had been moved into an apartment, and sent to the academy. As a special request from the Hokage she was not to reveal her actual age, and was deemed fifteen instead.

As if her standing weren't cliche enough, and despite her objections, she was put with the oldest class (a bunch of eleven-year-olds) which included the namesake of the manga series she had infiltrated. She had first read Naruto back when she was twelve years old, ten years ago, but she had enough memories to know what eerie future lay ahead for her quarreling classmates.

Her heart ached for Sasuke from the beginning, not in the way that most of her classmates did (afterall he was just a kid to her), but for what trials awaited him. Naruto was... a handful. She felt towards him initially what she had felt when she read the manga - disinterest. His annoying, childish actions got on her nerves and she understood why Iruka sensei often lost his temper with the young child. However despite her annoyance, she disliked the bullies of the class worse. Since she and Naruto were both at the bottom of the class, she had made an effort to swallow her pride and become friends.

Karen, who had shortened her name to Ren upon entering the academy for simplicity sake, struggled adjusting initially. While being older and studious afforded her good test scores, she might as well have been three-years-old and blind for how it helped her with the actual ninjutsu demonstrations. Six weeks in and she couldn't do anything **.**

As she stood at her station throwing stars, she remembered why she had been a choir girl in high school and was not involved in anything that required coordination. She missed all of the targets. Multiple times.

Ren had no success with the cloaking jutsu either. But that seemed obvious.

_The cloaking jutsu is like magic, I can't just do it._

The other students had soon noticed her failures and made whispered remarks to one another.

"Wow… She's even worse than Naruto."

Ren took a glance at the blond haired Ninja's work. He had somehow managed to change the leaf into a rather pinkish hue. His cloaking jutsu was… awful, but at least it was going somewhere. Ren's was just doing nothing. Her leaf remained green.

Students, one after another, completed the task and were allowed to go home. Soon it was only Naruto and Ren left. Iruka Sensei had been dealing with Naruto and after giving up had come over to see what the problem was with Ren.

Ren said: "I just don't get it. I'm doing everything the scroll says, but nothing is working. Mine just stays green."

Iruka Sensei smiled and said, "I'm sure it will just take some time. Don't worry too much. These kids have been studying for years. You and Naruto are released for today."

She looked up to him, doubtful.

"You aren't going to change it unless you believe you actually can." He'd said with a smile.

His words had struck a chord.

Ren laid on her roof that night and stared up into the night sky. The stars were the only familiar thing about these worlds.

She thought about Iruka's words.

_How am I supposed to believe I can, if I don't even really believe in this world!?_

Ren pondered on the phrase and noticed her mistake.

_If I don't believe in this world, then I can never really live in it… And if I don't live in it how can I ever find a way home?_

_But if I believe – then, I have to accept that this is real, and that I may never see my friends and family again..._

"What an awful paradox." Ren had said as the emotions stirred in her.

And with that, realization finally sunk in. This hadn't been some prolonged nightmare. She was here. And as the grief overwhelmed her, something else deep down took place too: the birth of hope. Maybe if she continued in the Ninja way she would be able to find the way to return home one day.

The next day she had been able to focus her attention on the leaf at the desk in front of her, and make it actually change color right before her eyes.

Iruka sensei had put a hand on her shoulder and stated, "Well done Ren, I knew you could." The others had looked around, unimpressed, but Iruka sensei knew better.

* * *

In the next couple of months Ren was surprised to discover that she was in fact quite good at genjutsu, (taijutsu still escaping her for sometime) as if her mind were made for it. It was of course endlessly frustrating to be in a class of preteens, but she was grateful that the pace of the class seemed to allow her time to catch up.

The year had gone by, and while Ren certainly wasn't near the top of the class she had made significant progress. She'd made some friends too, and almost felt at peace with her past. As she had no malicious intentions entering this world, eventually the suspicions surrounding her entrance slacked. While the occupants were engaged in the actual security risks of the ninja world, she became one of the many orphans to quietly occupy the academy until graduation.

"Well Ren, I have to say I'm impressed and surprised." Iruka sensei had said as he looked through her folder. "I thought it was a joke when the Third told me he was sending me a new student. I was certain we'd have to hold you back for a couple of years. But he was insistent..."

"Thank you sir."

"Now, mind you, you still have a long way to go. These students have years of theory on their back. However, with your rate of improvement, I'm proud to say you graduate."

A smile broke across her face displaying dimples. "Thank you sir." She bowed graciously and grabbed her bag.

Upon graduation the next day Ren found out that she had unintentionally booted Sakura out of team seven much to her dismay. This made her nervous for many reasons, one of which being her safety from the infamous Sasuke fangirls. As she sat at her desk that day she felt an icy stare on her back. When Ren looked behind, nearly every female's eyes bore into her.

"You… took our Sasuke…" One whispered indiscreetly.

Ren turned around tensely.

She whispered to her left. "Shikamaru, Save me…"

"Hmph. Save you? I'm stuck with the two insane girls…" Ren diverted her eyes to see Ino and Sakura who were poised like cats ready to attack each other.

"He was supposed to be in my group!" Sakura yelled.

"No mine!" Ino chanted back.

Shikamaru just closed his eyes and sighed.

"Alright everyone feel free to gather with your group; your new sensei will be here shortly." Iruka said with an oblivious grin.

The groups gathered, sat around and mingled one with another. Ren made her escape into the hall. "Sensei."

"Hm? Oh hello there Ren, are you-" Iruka began.

She interjected. "I can't be in this team."

Iruka was confused by her reaction.

"I'm afraid we've had enough trouble as it is making these teams. Our numbers were uneven this year... "

"I mean… Sensei, it's just really important that Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto are together."

He stared thoughtfully at her. Trying to grasp what angle she was coming from.

"I know you've improved much but there is still a lot you can learn from Sasuke, and Naruto too. I'm afraid it's too late, and I can't change –-" Iruka sensei was interrupted again, but this time by a familiar face or- familar mask.

"Ren, are you upset to be working with me again?"

She turned around. There was Kakashi.

"Of course not... You're here on time, Kakashi, I'm surprised..." Ren stated. She hadn't really seen him too much in the past 11-12 months, only when he came on the Third's orders to check up on her occasionally.

"Well, it seemed like an important day..." Kakashi took off towards the classroom to observe his new team.

Ren had distinctly remembered him being late to this very 'important day' in the manga. She wondered tensely what on Earth she had done to make that change…

* * *

That had only been a few weeks prior. But in those few weeks team seven had become her best friends. _I guess near death experiences do that,_ she thought.

As the rain cleared up, and the sun began to shine through, Ren's mind came back to the present situation in the land of the hidden Mist.

"What are you making there?" Naruto asked as Ren was putting together two bamboo crosses for the graves.

"Oh, um… Grave markers for them." Ren replied suddenly feeling self-conscious. Naruto looked at the odd cross shape. Ren had forgotten that crosses tended to be headstones only in western nations.

"They look nice." Kakashi said from behind.

"Let me help you finish them." Naruto offered, grabbing some rope.

"Thanks." Ren replied.

While she had expected to feel like an outsider to team seven, she was surprised to actually feel like she actually belonged there. And while she wouldn't readily admit it, she didn't want to give it up.

However the similar deaths of Haku and Zabuza disturbed Ren greatly, and made her wonder whether she should be doing more to change the future…


	2. Snake Eyes

**Chapter 2 - Snake Eyes**

Mumford and Sons

"Hey, will you pass the soy sauce?" Kakashi asked.

"Sure." Ren replied as she stopped eating and grabbed the sauce.

"You been doin' okay?" He added nonchalantly, as he poured the sauce into his bowl of ramen.

"Yeah… I mean, nothing too crazy is happening." She muttered while looking down at her bowl. She heard slurping, glanced up to make eye contact and smiled. His bowl was already half empty but his mask still covered his face. _How did he do that?_

Kakashi had asked Ren if she wanted ramen after training today. The team had learned in the past couple of months that "ramen" really meant "let's have a chat". They had been back from the land of the Hidden Mist for almost a month. Ren's stomach always churned now because she knew the Chuunin exams were coming soon.

Her time with Sasuke, Naruto, and Kakashi made her feel... whole again. It stirred something in her. The four of them had become good friends, but that joy came with pain as a price. The potential future gnawed at Ren's brain, and since returning from the mission she had silently determined that if she could change nothing else in this world she would at least not let the infamous Orochimaru bite Sasuke. As far as her memory was concerned that moment was the beginning of the downfall of team seven, and team seven was all that she had...

Ren hated that the majority of the Naruto series dealt with the power struggle of her two friends, Sasuke and Naruto. It seemed so surreal that these kids could be at the center of so much hatred. She assumed that they made up in the end of the series, but at what cost? The deaths and sorrows of so many? Unfortunately for her, by the time the Naruto series had ended Karen had grown up and was no longer interested in manga. She knew, much to her chagrin, only that there was some sort of ending and none of the preceding details. In fact the only true "arc" she still remembered in detail was the Chunin exams. That's why it was her only chance to change the future for them.

"Hmm…" Kakashi's voice brought her back to reality. He seemed unsatisfied with her answer. She'd forgotten what he had asked.

Ren sighed. "Have you ever had information that would allow you to change something, but not know whether it was your place to do so?"

Kakashi choked on his noodles slightly, obviously not expecting the loaded question. He swallowed. "Well… I think our job has put all of us in that situation before."

"I mean… something that you aren't supposed to know…" She knew she sounded suspicious, but she hoped Kakashi wouldn't assume the worst. She was torn between her duty as a shinobi to tell the Hokage everything that she knew about this world, and as a foreign human being to not to. _Where should my loyalty be?_

He didn't reply. Ren got nervous and attempted to end the conversation. "Never mind, it's not actually a big deal. You know me I'm just being a dramatic teenage girl," she figured that would do the trick.

He wasn't fooled. "Well that's one thing you aren't." Ren let out a nervous laugh as Kakashi put down his drink. "The Hokage told me when I first took over team seven."

This was not what Ren was expecting. _I suppose that would be something he would tell the team leader…_

"Oh… so you know.." she said.

"Hmm."

Ren wished she could tell him everything. The thought of someone bearing the burden with her gave her so much relief, but then she caught a glance at the scar under his left eye peeking through just below his headband. Her knowledge would certainly lead to _that_ conversationand she didn't want Kakashi's life in danger over knowing that Obito was still alive… _Maybe it's best no one knows..._

Ren spoke again. "Honestly, I wish I could tell you everything. But I don't think it's my place to..."

There was a moment of silence.

"You don't have to tell me anything." He lifted his bowl up. "But, I'm here if you ever need a chat though."

"Thanks Kakashi." She smiled up at him. He smiled back.

"Whatever it is, I trust you to make the right decision." he said.

Ren looked down. "Well now that I know that you know my real age, why don't we celebrate by buying me a drink." She reached for a container of sake farther down on the table.

Kakashi quickly moved it out of her reach. "Not on your life."

Ren laughed.

* * *

The dreaded exams came during the middle of summer a few weeks later. The wind carried with it a message of fear and hope for Ren.

She didn't know why, but Orochimaru had always enticed her growing up. In fact, his scientific prowess had truthfully played a small role in convincing Ren of what would end up being her major at university. She had quite the aptitude for genetics, but thankfully a much tighter moral compass.

She was almost positive she could get Orochimaru's attention. If there was one thing he wanted it was eternal youth. And she had somehow managed to turn back time from being a 22 year old to a 15 year old in the matter of a few moments, so she felt prepared to entice him.

When the investigation around her entrance into the hidden leaf village ended she had been given back most of her belongings that came over with her on her "trip". She now kept the clear photograph of her and her roommate Sara on her at all times as proof of her age if she should need it. She hoped it would be enough. _They may not have photoshop in this world… but they do have plenty of good disguises..._ She hoped Orichimaru wouldn't kill her before she got the chance to convince him.

Ren thought she remembered what Orochimaru was disguised as, but she became nervous a few days before the match when she didn't see him anywhere. They had come across several other new faces from the various hidden villages. Most of the contestants were concerned with Gaara naturally. Ren had nearly forgotten how terrifying he was in the beginning and avoided being near him at all costs. _I'll just let Naruto take that one for the team..._

Finally the first day arrived and team seven, along with their comrades from the academy prepared for Part 1 of the exam. If Ren remembered correctly, it was just a written test to scare off people.

Ren did not sleep the night before. She showered, prepared for the day, and met her team at the door to the exam arena. Naruto was goofing off as usual, but today it wasn't amusing.

Kakashi ended up meeting with them before entering and giving them some last advice. He too seemed to have his mind in a different spot. They gave their parting farewells to their teacher and stepped through the door; the entrance feeling heavier to Ren than any other in the past.

It only took Naruto a few minutes to declare his dominance.

"I'm Naruto Uzamaki and I'm gonna beat you punks out there!"

Although his bravery was commendable, Ren was glad to see Sakura quickly punch the kid to shut him up.

Just according to schedule, Kabuto walked by the group of twelve rookies. Ren recognized him easily with his gray hair and signature glasses. When she had been young the first episodes of the Naruto anime she had ever seen just so happened to be the episodes where Kabuto had joined up with team seven in the Forest of Death. At that time Karen herself had been fond of Kabuto. After all, he was friendly and very eager to help. But once she discovered his allegiance to well… no one, her fondness of the character had faded dramatically. In a silly way she felt betrayed by Kabuto as if she had already been there.

He welcomed the newcomers and offered some advice to be inconspicuous. Kabuto then showed them his stat cards he had on all the participants.

Sasuke asked for the cards on Gaara and Rock Lee. As Kabuto shared the information Ren tried to appear as small as possible. She sat down on a bench nearby and began to observe the other opponents. One reason why she had liked Kabuto so much in the beginning was because of his analytical skills. She reckoned in another life they would have been great friends exchanging information about people and so on.

She browsed the participants, making sure to not linger too long on any face. She was looking for one in particular…

"And Ren Ka, your card doesn't contain much information either…" Kabuto said. His glasses flashed and a grin spread across his face for just a moment. Her teammates' attention shifted towards her.

_That smile._ _Does he know something?…_

Ren had the nerve racking feeling that she had already been placed on the suspicious list.

"Well. That's what happens when you are new to the village… What's your name again?" She said with a naïve looking grin.

"You can call me Kabuto." His innocent look returned.

Someone interjected and asked him a question ending their moment - thankfully.

In a few moments, before Ren could even calculate what happened, one of the sound ninja attacked Kabuto with a kunai that he successfully dodged.

Ren was shocked. She hadn't remembered that. The staging of that moment was impressive considering both parties had the same boss… _Or maybe they don't know they are both working for the same boss_ … She didn't remember. Either way it was genius on their master's part. Ren expected no less from Orochimaru.

Soon after the incident, the frightening proctor entered and the ninja began the written portion of the test. During the exam Ren felt uneasy. She was in good company, and grateful that nervousness was expected of all the attendees so she could mask her fear. She still hadn't seen Orochimaru and she was nervous that her presence had already changed too much to make things predictable.

The written test went as usual, the scare tactic working on several of the first timers and having them call it quits before they even entered the forest of death. As the proctor finally admitted their success, who should come bursting through the window but Anko.

She attempted to scare the students, and failed miserably.

_I remember Anko being a lot cooler… but she's kinda like Naruto._

It was interesting to see Anko in person. She was the only female character that Ren had ever really liked in the manga, and that was primarily due to her complex relationship with Orochimaru which Ren had always found fascinating. But it was different seeing her in person.

From Anko they were given directions on where to meet on the next day and then dismissed. Ren had not seen Orochimaru. Perhaps he'd been put in a different exam room…

* * *

Ren returned back to the same spot the next day. This time with three hours of sleep, which she kept as a small victory.

Another one of those mystical déjà vu moments occurred as Anko cut Naruto's face with a kunai knife. Ren had missed the reason why, being preoccupied with her own thoughts, but that didn't matter as much as where the kunai went next. It flew by another girl and cut a few strands of her hair.

_Orochimaru._

It didn't matter that he didn't look like himself, his expression, his eyes, the look of intense interest gave him away. Ren couldn't help but audibly gasp. Sasuke who was sitting nearby gave her a side glance.

As the familiar scene played out, Anko creeping on Naruto, Orochimaru returning the Kunai with his tongue, Ren just stared at him. Hoping the overwhelming aura of this person would fade or something, but it didn't. She knew she shouldn't stare. It was too obvious, but how couldn't she?

Finally as the scene neared ending, and Orochimaru took his place in the background, Ren forced her eyes away from him. She would be staring into his eyes soon enough, no need to accelerate that time…

But as the morning continued on, Ren had the eerie feeling that she had already made an impression.

She made eye contact with him only once more, just when grabbing the terms and conditions paper. As she had turned around, she came face to face with the snake man disguised as a woman. The returning gaze had been long and conscious. What frightened her most was surprisingly the lack of a smile on his face.

_How very out of character. Perhaps I don't remember him correctly..._

Out of fear, or instinct, or something else Ren gave him a small genuine smile. She then nodded, acknowledging his awareness and swiftly walked away.

Ren sat down hurriedly and began to mark up her 'terms' paper for entering the forest of death.

"May I sit next to you?" The velvety voice of the serpent called out.

Ren didn't have to look up to know who it was. Her heart skipped a beat.

"Of course. Please do." She continued to stare at the paper.

This was her moment.

For some reason or another she had caught his interest and it was time to present the feast. But Ren couldn't think of what to do. This hadn't been what she planned, she was going to approach him, not the other way around.

After a few moments of silence Orochimaru said: "You remind me of someone I once knew." His smile had returned.

Ren finally looked up. Those piercing eyes weren't sparing her one bit.

"Oh?"

He continued the gaze, his eyes searching for something.

"Do you know who I am?" He asked.

His eyes. They were so overwhelming. She waited too long to reply. "I'm afraid not…" She looked at his head band. "I've never been to the Sound Village."

His eyes dilated a bit, but no other response was visualized.

"No, perhaps not." He broke eye contact and got up to leave.

"Is it… nice there?" Ren said, trying desperately to stall and salvage the conversation.

He looked at her once more, his smug smile returning: "It's to die for." Ren's fear showed through her face. Orochimaru glanced for one more moment and then walked away, empty terms and condition paper still in his hand.

Ren left soon after to turn in her paper and join team seven. She berated herself internally.

In what seemed like a blink of an eye, they were past the gates into the well-named forest. Their object was to make it to the end with two different types of scrolls. They were handed one at the beginning and needed to overpower another group and take their scroll before exiting.

The challenges were beyond what Ren remembered. Bugs, tigers, and all sorts of creatures out to get you. So far they had fared pretty well thanks to Kakashi's team training and Sasuke's ego. But as the clock ticked further, Ren's mind traversed to dark places.

_Maybe he won't show. Maybe after talking with me he decided to be kind..._

Ren frowned at the strange thought. She knew that wasn't true.

Soon the inevitable came.

They had been counseling as a team on creating a password to know one another. Naruto was struggling, as expected. But before they could focus a massive blast of wind swept through the trees blowing them all away.

Ren was thrown into a bush.

"Euuugh… Sasuke, Naruto?" She coughed.

"Ren, what's the password?" Sasuke asked her from a few feet away.

She stated it as well as she could remember, and moved closer to her friend.

"Where's Naruto?"

"I'm over here!" The very battered kid pushed his way through the wreckage of trees. Sasuke asked him the password similarly.

He repeated it perfectly.

Before a moment's notice Ren threw a kunai directly at his heart. He dodged it. Noting that Sasuke hadn't objected, Ren assumed he was also aware of the fraud.

The pseudo Naruto seemed impressed, and began chuckling. He then transformed from his shadow jutsu into the sinister woman disguise.

Orochimaru.

"Hmhm… Two mice instead of one? This will be fun."

After a moment of dialogue with Sasuke, Orochimaru proceeded to take out his scroll and eat it. Sasuke was terrified. Ren remained silent.

"Let's make this life or death, shall we?" The snake man smiled.

Orchimaru pulled down on his cheek revealing his fearsome left eye. Ren realized the likelihood of her death at this moment was exceedingly high. It was almost crippling, but as she looked over to Sasuke it was apparent that what she had been trying to digest for months had hit Sasuke all at once. His face was a blank one of horror.

"Sasuke!" Ren called next to him. Orochimaru was standing no less than 20 feet from them and Sasuke was just sitting there frozen.

_This is bad…_

The over zealous boy she once knew had been plastered with fear.

Ren faced the amused woman.

"Hm? Up so fast."

"You don't want Sasuke!" She yelled tremblingly. "I can offer you something better."

"I highly doubt that..." he said amusedly, but his eyes contradicted his words.

Orochimaru pulled out Ren's kunai from the tree behind him and aimed it towards her friend.

_No._

Ren grabbed Sasuke and jumped away. The one push seemed to be enough to shock him out of fear. They both jumped from tree to tree, but Orochimaru just stood there.

"I couldn't move.." Sasuke gasped. "She was going to kill..."

"I'm sure you would have been fine…" Ren interjected. "But listen to me, Sasuke." She paused to catch her breath. "I've got an idea to stop him!"

"…Him?"

"Shush. _She'll_ be coming soon. Get up."

Ren's mind was swimming.

They didn't wait for long. Orochimaru made his appearance, and true to his snake-like nature slithered up the side of a tree. He was going to strike at them when all of the sudden Naruto reentered the scene.

A useless argument began between Naruto and Sasuke about whether to give Orochimaru the scroll. Ren debated her options.

"…Sasuke you are being a cowa-" Naruto exclaimed.

"Shut up both of you!" Ren yelled. "He doesn't care about the scroll. He just wants a good game."

Ren shot a deadly glare in the direction of the snake man.

"He?" This time Naruto was the one posing the stupid question. "Ren, I know she's ugly but, that's defin-"

"Hmhmmhm.." I low chuckle emerged from Orochimaru. "That's quite clever considering that we've never met before. Aren't you fascinating…Why don't you tell them who I am, hm?"

Her eyes stayed linked on him. She wasn't going to let him escape her view.

"His name is Orochimaru. He's a rogue ninja, from the leaf." She stated.

Sasuke and Naruto were both shocked. How did she know any of this?

"Well done…" His smile was frightening, "Now, my apologies for the time, but it seems I'm being pursued." He looked behind his shoulder for a moment "So as entertaining as you are, I'm afraid you aren't the focus of tonight's gathering."

In a moment of speed the snake man had launched at Sasuke, and the fight she'd dreaded had begun.

Sasuke had seemed to finally recover and was demonstrating his Uchiha abilities magnificently. Naruto, in his attempt to interfere, had been cast away like a play-thing. Ren feared the same would happen to her.

As she watched Sasuke attempt to blow up Orochimaru she prayed to know what to do.

Ren quickly joined her friend in the fight for their lives and eagerly participated in the traps she and Sasuke had learned over the past couple of months. She'd been practicing Sasuke's strictly "Uchiha moves" behind his back to use as her last ditch effort to convince the Snake to switch targets.

She could tell Orochimaru was getting restless and would bite Sasuke soon. She needed to make her move.

Ren froze a vine around Sasuke, taking him by surprise. With confidence that was not her own, she then used the fire ball jutsu, a move she had only ever just witnessed from her friend.

It worked and it worked well.

Ren felt a power surge through her body as she closed her eyes and completed the impressive jutsu. It was nothing like she had ever felt before. She opened her eyes and felt confidence soar through her. Orchimaru turned and faced the girl with awe. In a matter of moments Sasuke had become an afterthought. The snake's ever-present smile had once again disappeared.

"Those eyes…" he said, barely audible.

This made Ren nervous. She couldn't fake a Sharingan. She assumed he was still pursuing Sasuke whose shaingon was presently staring at her unbelievingly.

"Ren… You're an Uchiha?" Sasuke said.

Ren was relieved, her fireball jutsu had been more convincing than she would have thought possible. She turned around to face Orochimaru and was shocked to see him less than an arm's length away. His hand went up as if to touch her and then fell to his side.

"...Ume?" Orochimaru said in a quiet tone only she could hear, still looking as though he were in a trance.

Ren was so confused. Who was Ume, what on earth was he talking about?

"…What?" She responded.

His gaze broke.

"Hm…We will see." He muttered. A look of enmity appeared clearly on his face. It was not at all what Ren expected. "If you survive this, g _irl_ , then we'll see about making a deal."

He grabbed the back of her head aggressively with one hand, and her shoulder with the other. Before Ren could process she felt the teeth on her neck, and a warm flow of liquid down her spine.

"Looks like our time has ended." He said solemnly. And with a poof of smoke Orochimaru vanished.

Sasuke released himself from the vines and jumped down to a despondent Ren. Her eyes were open, but she just knelt there silent.

Sasuke watched in terror.

_What happened to her?_

In part of the forest, the infamous snake was also wondering the same question, but about another girl.


	3. Once Upon a Dream

**Chapter 3 - Once Upon a Dream**

Lana Del Ray

_Ren was being held tightly by her Mother. Her mother was rubbing her daughter's cheek to comfort her, but something was wrong and Ren knew it._

_There was a snowy blizzard outside. Suddenly Mother tensed up._

" _Ume, run to the shed. Stay there till I come for you."_

_Ren didn't want to listen but knew the tone was serious. She didn't want to leave Mother._

_Mom kissed her forehead tenderly, and looked her daughter in the eyes. Her lip quivered as she whispered the word "Go", then moved closer to the front door taking a fighting stance._

_Ren took one last look at Mother, and then ran down the hallway. She was young, but old enough to open up the back window with only a little struggle. The blizzard outside was raging._

_After climbing out, she tried to close the window quietly. She then ran through the snow to the shed about a half-mile away in the woods, grateful for wind which she hoped would cover her footprints. She thought she heard noises from the front of the house, but kept going._

_Mother would want that._

_It was so cold._

_Once at the shed she closed herself in and sat in the back corner._

_It felt like forever._

_She worried about mother and father._

_Why hadn't they come? Where are they?_

_She heard footsteps._

_She was so frightened; she took a fighting stance similar to that of her mother's._

_Father taught me to fight._

_Her young heart beat rapidly as the shed door creaked open._

_A man looked at her. His gaze was serious, worn, though he was young. He couldn't have been more than ten years older than her. His eyes were… something else. They spoke of his youth._

" _I'll fight you!" She yelled._

_They stared at each other for a moment._

" _I don't want to fight you." The young man said soberly._

" _Where are my mother and father?" She shifted her feet, and furrowed her brow._

_His eyes saddened for a moment._

" _Your parents are dead."_

_The young girl's brave stance dropped._

_She spoke in a timorous voice, "Did you kill... them?" she asked._

" _No," he said calmly, "The people who did, escaped."_

_Tears filled the young girl's eyes and blurred her vision. "Why… What will I do?"._

_She wiped her eyes with her sleeves. Confused and filled with utter grief she walked slowly towards the young man in front of her, and put her arms around him sobbing._

_The action surprised the young shinobi, perhaps because young girls didn't often throw themselves at him._

_As she grasped him tightly, sobbing, she cried. "Will I ever see them again?"_

_The plea, that echoed his own as a child touched him. The young man put his hand on the back of her head, pulling the now shivering girl close._

" _I will make sure you do." She looked up into his eyes. Their golden hue gave her hope like the sun after a storm._

" _What's… your name?" She asked through sniffs and sobs._

_He brushed back her bangs from her eyes. "Orochimaru."_

* * *

Sasuke watched Ren closely for the next couple of days. Something was just… off. Since that creature… _Orochimaru had_ bitten her she'd been quieter than usual. He had no desire to speak with her after what she did, so he didn't mind.

How could she not have told him all this time that she was an Uchiha... Where had she been all these years? How come her Sharingan was fully developed? He couldn't help but feel betrayed.

Initially he had been nervous that she'd been poisoned by the guy, but after a few minutes she had stood up and was insistent that they continued on in the forest. But he saw how she winced as she touched the bite mark.

* * *

As they walked to the edge of the forest Ren touched the bite mark wrapped well under a cloth. _Ume_. Wasn't that the name Orochimaru had uttered to her just before biting her? Why had that woman in the dream called her that too? She remembered feeling devastated in the dream when she found out about her parents death, but the woman in the dream was not Ren's mother.

Even more confusing she had expected intense pain or death when she was bitten, but nothing had happened. The only proof that the event actually occurred was the tomoe shaped scar on her back. The bite in and of itself had hurt, sure, but after the sting wore off all that was left was chills down her back and that… vision.

Sasuke had been acting weird too. Angry. She figured he'd be upset about her using his "precious Uchiha's jutsu" but she didn't realize he'd be this big of a baby about it. But they were all physically and mentally exhausted, even Naruto was keeping his mouth shut.

They eventually found a weakened team to take the scroll from and prepared to report to the finish area. It was easy… too easy Ren thought to herself.

When Naruto stopped for a bathroom break Ren sat down for what seemed like the first time in ages. She let out a sigh and started gathering her hair to put up in a ponytail.

"So. Why didn't you say anything?" Sasuke asked. Ren looked up to see his eyes intently looking down at her. She looked back down to her satchel to find her hairband.

"Because… I didn't think you'd get so mad about me using your fireball jutsu. Look, I'm sorry, okay?"

"Not about that."

She made eye contact again. She was not in the mood for one of his "moods". "Look, you have your secrets, I have mine. But just so you're aware, I don't actually know the snake personally I just had a feeling he'd make an entrance."

"Why in the Hell do you have a Sharingan?" He said angrily.

"What are you talking about? I don't have a Sharingan…" She looked at him confused. "Have you lost your mind?"

Sasuke's face betrayed him. "You didn't… know?"

She stood up. "Know what?"

"Ren, the reason he attacked you was because of your eyes, you idiot." She looked at him incredulously. He had to be kidding.

She looked around for a puddle or anything that was reflective. She found some goo left by Heaven knows what. All she saw were her blue eyes in the reflection.

"Activate it." he said sternly.

"I don't know how!"

He motioned with his own hands and activated his Sharingan. Just then Naruto returned from his break.

"Can you guys save your fight till after we leave the forest? I think I ate something strange back there..." Naruto pleaded.

"He's right." Ren replied. "We need to get out of here."

* * *

The next round was unfortunately the same as she remembered. As soon as they exited the forest they were to battle one of their peers in their exhausted state.

And that was the least of her worries.

As they were called to fight, Ren didn't pay much attention. She saw that Sakura and Ino fought as to be expected. Seems like fate would deal that card no matter what. Sasuke went against Lee and nearly lost, but after that Ren kept falling back into her thoughts.

_What did Orochimaru mean? Is he here?_

"Ren, go!" Naruto yelled.

"What?" She looked at the board. Her name and… Kankuro of the sand was there.

_Oh no… Not a sand ninja._

Kankuro gave a satisfied grin, obviously not frightened of the girl. As she made her way to the stadium, Sasuke grabbed her wrist.

"Don't show it here." was all he said. Ren nodded. What if Orochimaru showed up again and realized she was a fake? Ren was pretty sure this _Ume_ couldn't save her then…

Ren stared across at her rival. Kankuro had poison dipped parts of his puppets. And was particularly fond of using Crow… but other than that she had little recollection of him or his fighting style.

He chuckled to himself. "This will be easy."

The battle started out speedily, with Ren mostly on defense avoiding poison at all costs. She couldn't get anywhere near to Kankuro, which made things difficult. But since all his attacks were long range for him, he was in quite the powerful position.

Those watching soon lost interest. They all figured she couldn't run forever. Their casualness bothered Ren. Maybe it was her pride. She didn't come all this way, get bitten by Orochimaru, for nothing.

Ren dodged a kunai.

_Two can play this puppeting game._

Ren used a weak water jutsu just to splash water on her opponent's side of the field. She then attempted to still the wooden puppet Crow using the water soaked into his outer layer... The wood was still mostly dry, to be expected, but there was enough.

To the crowd she continued losing, but the look on Kankuro's face told the truth.

She grinned a bit.

_Take that._

Since her time with team seven Ren had discovered she had quite the talent for any water jutsu that came her way. On more than one occasion she was able to recognize the signs of water clones during the Haku arc, and she had been studying all sorts of various techniques since then.

She may have been using the mizuseigyo jutsu, but Ren prefered the name _water bending_.

She could only hold him off for a few seconds at a time, but it bought her enough time for a real strategy. She wasn't even sure she could use the Sharingan so she would have to pull another trick up her sleeve.

As the water began to "spill" off of the puppet, Ren lost control. He came straight for her arm and gave her a small cut.

But it was deep enough.

Ren panicked. She knew she only had a small bit of time before the poison would set in.

Kankuro confirmed the look on her face, with laughter.

"You may be able to slow down my puppet, but in the end you are just a pathetic leaf ninja like the rest."

She had to act fast.

Ren looked at Sasuke. He shook his head.

She looked down.

A strange idea came to her.

Ren quickly made the hand signals and mouthed the jutsu under her breath.

Kankuro's smile dropped. He stiffened up, and then dropped to the ground on his knees.

"What…. Is… happening?" He struggled.

Ren was walking forward to him with both hands outreached; sweat beading down her forehead. As she got closer, the harder he fell to the ground.

The crowd was watching now.

Ren yelled. "He's on the ground isn't he? Start counting!"

The startled referee began the count down from 10, 9, 8…

Kankuro started turning purple.

7, 6, 5…

Ren was losing strength, shaking.

4, 3…

Kankuro couldn't breath.

2, 1.

"The winner is Ren!"

She immediately released him from the technique and collapsed to her knees panting.

He was fighting for air, but she heard his weak breath say: "What the Hell was that?"

She remained silent on her part. The dizziness was overwhelming.

_The poison…_

She saw a flash of gray, and then…

Darkness.


	4. Doppelgänger

**Chapter 4 - Doppelgänger**

Lissom

Ren woke up with a searing headache. There was a bright light above her and the smell of bleach was strong in the room. After a few blinks she could tell she was in the hospital bunker below the stadium.

"... antidote should start kicking in around now, but to be honest, her body seemed to be doing a good enough job on its own. Never seen anything like it." The nurse put down an item and washed her hands. "I need to check on another patient. One not nearly as lucky…"

"Mm. Thank you." Kakashi's voice. Ren heard the nurses footsteps as she left the room.

After a few moments he spoke, "...That was quite a battle you had up there."

Ren sat up slowly and rubbed the back of her neck.

"Mind telling me where you learned that last technique?" he asked. Ren used her other hand as a shield from the light while she continued to rub the base of her neck.

"I don't really know… It just came to mind as I was running out of options." She replied, still feeling weak.

"Hm." Was all he replied. They sat there for a moment listening to the distant roar of the crowd. Ren wondered who was fighting.

"That was a forbidden technique." Kakashi said, pulling her back to reality.

Ren's stomach clenched.

"What? You know I would never use something like that... How would I even know something like that?" She said, feeling panicked.

His voice remained calm. "That's what people are asking upstairs too. Why don't you start with how you got that mark on your neck?" He didn't sound suspicious, just matter of fact.

Ren immediately moved her hand up to cover the curse mark. The bandage must have been removed by the nurse. She was at a loss for words.

"Um…" She started off. "Well, there was… I mean Orochimaru was in the forest of death. And- he went for Sasuke, but then he switched and came for me instead. And then he…. bit me, and I mean it looks worse than it feels…"

"Orochimaru?" Kakashi's face had a concerned look on it.

The crowd roared signifying that the battle was over. Kakashi looked towards the stairs at the end of the hallway.

"Hm… Naruto's next. I should be there to watch."

"Go, I'll join you in just a moment. I'm just waiting for the room to stop spinning." She said with a smile, hoping he'd crack one too, but it was in vain.

"I think it's best if we go together."

He helped her off the table. Then he walked behind her as she used the walls to keep balance.

"This is why I will never buy you a drink." he murmured.

She laughed but she wasn't feeling too hopeful for the future.

* * *

As it turned out the consequences of her actions extended far wider than she could have predicted. She had to get her curse mark sealed, which hurt like hell. Then she was disqualified from the Chunin exams and had a mandatory meeting scheduled with the Hokage the day after to "discuss her options as a foreign resident of the hidden leaf". Ren couldn't believe it. Gaara was allowed to nearly- no actually- kill people because he was an honored guest and not "property" of the Hidden leaf. Not to mention all of the sound ninja who certainly weren't upright and noble followers of the law being allowed to continue to the next rounds graciously. How could there be such a double standard?

"We just have a higher standard for our own citizens." Kakashi had said. But she wouldn't hear it.

She showed up bright and early to her meeting with the Hokage the next day. It's not like she was allowed to do anything else.

She was escorted by her two _favorite_ old guards, but unlike her first meeting they left her alone to chat with the third. He seemed distressed and older than she remembered. She was certain Kakashi had told him about his old student's return.

The whole ordeal was so similar to the year before, and yet so much had changed in one year. She wasn't that girl anymore. _Karen._ The name felt foreign.

"Ren." The Hokage said as he rubbed one hand on his forehead. "I'm sorry for what happened to you."

The apology surprised her. "Hokage-sama…"

He interjected. "I should have told you a long time ago. But you were adjusting so well, and I didn't want to add any more grief to you…" He mumbled off into sentences she couldn't hear.

"What are you... talking about?" She asked calmly.

The Hokage went silent for a moment. He then carefully opened up the drawer in front of him and pulled out a small photo. He stared at it for a moment, just the corner of his lips hinting at a smile.

He let out a deep sigh. "This is yours."

Ren stood up, and leaned forward to grab the photo. She grasped the image with both of her hands.

She gasped.

It was a photo of Orochimaru. He was younger, happier. Maybe in his early twenties or so. He had a genuine smile on his face that made his eyes raise at the corners. _I never noticed that before._ He was so different from the Orochimaru she had just seen in the forest.

In the picture he was standing next to a young girl. He had one arm around her shoulder. They looked so happy. Not a care in the world. The girl was maybe twelve years old with one hand giving the peace sign.

_She is me._

"I don't understand…" Ren trailed off. "W _ho_ is this girl?"

The Hokage seemed to be searching for the right words. "Her name is Ume and I believe she is _you_."

Ren finally looked up from the photo and attempted to return it as though a contagious virus were on the surface. "But I don't understand. I never _saw_ any of this. Trust me if an Ume existed I would know."

"Ren." He spoke firmly and rejected the offering. "Please, take a seat." She sat down still holding the photo.

"Many years ago I trained Orochimaru. His parents died when he was young, and it changed him forever." The words seemed hard for him to say. He closed his eyes. "Although talented beyond anything I had seen before, he often spent his time alone. I feared for his well-being." His eyes opened again and he looked at Ren.

"But, one day he brought home a young orphan girl he'd found on a mission. He insisted on training her himself. And seeing him so happy, I couldn't say no." The Hokage flashed a small smile at the memory. "She also exhibited great talent, but more importantly she shared something I had always longed for with my student- _connection."_

Ren was mesmerized by the story. Could it be this is where that dream had sprung?

"As the years passed, they grew, and the darkness I had feared in my student was replaced with peace. He seemed finally able to conquer the demons of his parents' loss because he had a light to hold onto."

The Hokage's shoulders dropped as he said the next phrase. "But- then one day when the girl was fifteen years old, the village was attacked. She disappeared with no trace- never to be seen again." His voice quieted. "Until twenty-two years later… when you showed up."

"Twenty-two years… That's how old I was when I came here…" Ren's heart was beating fast.

_What does all of this mean? Why don't I remember this if that's what happened? Am I this girl?... Was my whole other life, just… a lie? No. No…_

"Hokage-sama, I thank you for telling me, but I'm not sure I am this girl. Wouldn't I remember all of this?"

"Instances of this nature, defying time as it were, were not uncommon for the Kou people according to legend. Although they supposedly died off years ago..." This was all so overwhelming to Ren. "I'm not sure where you were for twenty-two years, but if someone was gone that long amnesia seems likely to me."

"… " She put her head in her hands with the photo sitting on her lap.

Losing her family was hard enough, but being told she wasn't supposed to be from that world was unbearable to hear. Was her whole life just a lie?! Was she wishing to return to a family that she didn't belong to?

"I'm so sorry Ren, I know this has to be hard to hear." His voice was strained.

Ren took a few deep breaths to calm herself. "The girl- Ume's parents. Who are they?"

"I'm afraid I don't know. Orochimaru was very protective of her." He said.

"You mean secretive." She stated.

They sat in silence for a moment.

"Hokage-sama, is that why you let me into the village?"

"Mm. Some of the council was sure you were a spy for Orochimaru, an experiment perhaps. But-"

"- Who's to say I'm not? Maybe I just don't remember. They could be right you know…"

"Ren."

She stopped.

"Ume or not, your character is not one of darkness." She was skeptical. "Just chalk it up to old man wisdom." He attempted a smile.

She did not return one.

He sighed and continued. "Ume was already a chunin, could've been a jounin. So don't feel too bad about being disqualified from the tournament."

The tournament was the least of her worries now.

"It took me some time to find it, but I have Ume's old shinobi file, if you'd like to look at it, maybe it will jog some memories."

He handed her a manila file. She began to give him back the picture, but he waved it away. "It's yours. Keep it in there if you like." She slid the photo in, and bowed to the Hokage. He nodded back.

As Ren walked out, Kakashi, leaning against the wall reading his book, gave her a two finger wave. He must have been there the entire time.

"Ja, did it go okay in there?"

"Mm." She replied. He looked down at the shinobi file. Obviously, he was expecting more of an answer.

"What's that?"

Ren debated whether or not to tell him.

"Kakashi, would you like to come over for lunch?"

* * *

They entered her apartment, and she took out some vegetables to cut. She would tell him what she learned, but keeping her hands busy would help. Besides, she was still digesting the photo of Ume and Orochimaru. She had no desire to open up the rest of the file.

Kakashi offered to help, but when she declined it he sat patiently by the counter.

"So…" she began after the potatoes were chopped. " The Hokage gave me this." Ren rinsed her hands and handed the folder to Kakashi. On top was the picture.

When he saw it his expression clearly reflected her own at the time.

"What… is this?" He asked, holding the picture.

"A girl named Ume. She was Orochimaru's student here twenty-three-years ago, until she suddenly disappeared."

"May I?" He asked, referring to the file.

"Knock yourself out. Apparently he found this _Ume_ as an orphan and brought her back to the village."

Kakashi looked at the file.

"It says here she was seven years old when he found her."

Ren tried to focus her attention on the vegetables as Kakashi flipped through the small file. There were only a few pages.

"What does it say?"

"…Not much." Kakashi answered. Ren threw the food in a pan on the stove. "Blood type, rank, emergency contact…"

"And that is?"

"Orochimaru."

Sometimes, when people would say his name it had the feeling of Voldemort from Harry Potter. Maybe it was a snake thing.

She scooped some rice, put two bowls out, and joined Kakashi at the counter. The Hokage had been correct there; Orochimaru had been very 'protective' of Ume. There wasn't much of anything in this folder. Most subjects were followed by a blank.

"Hm… Look at this Kakashi." Ren pointed to Ume's birthday. "March 2nd. But you and I celebrated our birthdays in September. Why would it be any different?" This fact alone helped her feel better about her identity.

"Ren, you said Ume disappeared 23 years ago?"

"Yeah."

"Well, look here."

Ren's eyes followed down to the handwritten note at the bottom of the last page. It read: 'Missing Nin since September 21st...' and listed a year that was barely decipherable.

"…How… I'm not this girl, Kakashi."

But even as she said it, Ren grew ever unsure.

Kakashi handed her the file and she poured over it (somehow he also consumed her food without her noticing the momentary mask removal).

She read the same lines again, wishing there was more.

* * *

Kakashi left after a few hours to make sure she was alright, but the more they discussed it the more uncertain she felt.

Ren couldn't sleep that night, but not because she was afraid. She knew the Hokage was on high alert and there were likely guards keeping an eye on her house.

She had to know more about this Ume. That girl was the key to returning home, a thought Ren hadn't entertained consciously in months. Ren knew there was only one person who could tell her. And as much as she denied it, she wanted more than ever to see him.


	5. Dirty Little Secret

**Chapter 5 - Dirty Little Secret**

All-American Rejects

The rest of the Chunin exams continued without a hitch. Everyone was pleased, and Ren tried to be grateful too that things were 'normal'. Her impact had definitely changed things…. This was what she wanted right?

Shikamaru won the final tournament. He along with Sasuke, Temari, Gaara and Neji were also awarded chunin status for their exemplary effort.

Despite the large changes internally, mostly things settled back into a regular pattern. Team seven started doing more frequent C rank missions. Ren and Sasuke made up, and she ultimately told him that she really didn't know who her parents were so maybe she had an Uchiha ancestor along the road somewhere. It seemed to satisfy him at least for the moment. They started training alone together. Sasuke insisted she keep the Sharingan a secret for now and she agreed. No need to interest the Akatsuki when she already had Orochimaru sniffing out her scent.

The problem was that even in the midst of all this normality Ren started to have more of those 'Ume dreams'. She tried to ignore thinking too much about them, because they made her feel uncomfortable, like she was reading someone else's journal and learning about all of their secrets.

These dreams were different from the first one, but always featured Ume and Orochimaru in various everyday situations. Ren was so intrigued, but still didn't know what to think of Ume. A girl by that name never existed in the Naruto manga so despite the third Hokage's assurances, Ren still questioned if she was actually real. And if Ume did exist and was as important to Orochimaru as the Hokage implied, then surely it would have been revealed.

Not that she could tell anyone that though…

All of this new information threw a wrench into her plans. Ren needed to refigure out what to do to ensure Sasuke's safety and get her back to her own world.

Sadly, she was limited in her options to explore because Ren got a cat. It was not her choice. The council insisted that she take on a ninneko as protection in case Orochimaru was lurking around. She knew what that really meant was that the little demon was spying on her.

His name was Ginko, presumably because the tips of his ears had a silver sheen to them. He wasn't all that bad. Just a little too formal for her liking.

"Where are we headed to today Ms. Ka?" Ginko asked politely as Ren readied herself at the vanity. It was her day off and Ren had a specific errand she wanted to accomplish before the days end.

"I'm heading into town to purchase a charger." The cat, confused, waited for an explanation. When it didn't come he pushed further.

"What kind of item is that?" he probed, his tail moving curiously.

She pulled out the old smartphone from her backpack that had lost charge a long time ago.

"I need some kind of cord that can give energy to this. It has some music on it I would like to hear again."

"Hm… I've never seen a cord like that." the cat said. He said it in a way that made it sound like her attempt would be futile. She didn't appreciate the commentary.

She readied herself and headed into town to a little shop for electronics. This world certainly wasn't as technologically savvy as the old world, but they had refrigerators and microwaves so she was hopeful they could produce a simple charging cord.

The shop took one look at her phone and promptly declared that there was nothing like that available there. _No Problem._ Ren thought, _there's plenty of shops in Konoha._

…

Six hours later Ren and her little shadow had yet to find a place that would even consider looking for a similar cord.

"I think we should head back Ms. Ka. It's past your dinner time." Ginko said. Ren's patience waned thin. Then she saw out of the corner of her eye a flash from the glasses of a particularly well connected boy.

"Kabuto, isn't it?"

The gray haired boy grinned, and turned around to face her. "It is. Ren Ka. I wondered what happened to you after the… unfortunate mishap in the chunin exams."

She bit her tongue from saying what she really wanted to say and instead focused on her problem. "Hey, I have a question for you. I have this music player here, but I lost the charging cord awhile back. Do you know anyone who maybe has a knack for… making such cords?"

He looked at it curiously as she pulled out the phone.

"Wow. I've never seen anything like this before." He looked fascinated. "Can I hold it?"

Ren wondered if she would regret this later on but handed him the device.

Kabuto continued after feeling the phone in his hands. "You're in luck. I happen to have a hobby of fixing electrical devices. Although nothing like this one of course… but a charging cord should be quite simple."

"Really?" Ren felt relieved. The phone may have lost its connection abilities but there were pictures and music downloaded that she was wanting to see again.

"Yeah shouldn't be a problem at all. Give me a week to gather materials and it should be pretty easy." He started to pocket the phone. Ren worried about having her personal information accessible to the Akatsuki and Orochimaru's favorite snitch.

She stopped him. "Thank you Kabuto. That would be a real help. Do you mind if I hold onto the music player for the week? Maybe we can meet up next Saturday and work on it together. It was a gift from my mother and I'm kind of protective of it."

He nodded his head. "Of course, no problem. Does next Saturday at 16:00 work?" He handed her back the phone.

"Yeah that would be great. I'll make you dinner for the trouble." Ren added.

"We look forward to it." Ginko added. Kabuto looked down at the cat with a smile.

Boy he was good at faking his emotions.

She wrote down his address and they decided to meet at his apartment the next week. It was the first time she was grateful to have her watch cat. Kabuto's apartment wasn't someplace she really wanted to be alone.

The week went by pretty uneventful. They had a short three day escort mission to the hidden sand village, and Naruto accidently set his bottom on fire during one of their trainings, but that was pretty standard. By the time Saturday had arrived she was looking forward to having her phone back.

* * *

"Awwww! Another mission finished! This Ninja work is hard business, who's up for some ramen?" Naruto said early Saturday afternoon.

"Yeah… I've got some training to do instead. But thanks for the offer." Ren said as she made her way to leave.

"I'll come with you." Sasuke added nonchalantly.

"Hm?" Naruto looked at them suspiciously. "Maybe Sakura-chan is right, you two are dating…"

"We are not!" The two said in unison.

 _This is exactly what I don't need right now. If the girls hear word of this I'll be dead for sure…_ Ren thought.

"Woah, Naruto, you are seriously misunderstanding. We just like to train with each other, you know?" She said and looked to Sasuke for back up.

Naruto didn't look convinced. She continued,"My type is- _different_."

She let that sink in.

"…What _is_ your type?" Sasuke asked, a little annoyed. He may not have liked her that way, but it was still insulting to his boyish pride.

Naruto added curiously. "Yeah, you never talk about boys. Do you even like boys?"

She had anticipated a lot of worst-case-scenarios in this world, but being interrogated about dating by Sasuke and Naruto wasn't one of them.

"No, of course I dont like boys... I like _men_." Ren said thinking that would stop their curiosity.

"So... like Kakashi sensei?" Naruto stated.

"What? Why would you assume that?" She laughed.

"It's obvious isn't it?" Sasuke went on, "Your cheeks always get pink when he compliments you."

Ren stepped back surprised.

"And how come you've been noticing that, eh, Sasuke?" She asked squinting in his direction.

Sasuke looked a little caught off guard. "Like I said, even this idiot recognizes it." He pointed to Naruto.

"Yeah, even I- HEY!" Naruto yelled.

"I don't like Kakashi Sensei _that_ way. In fact I have plans with another man tonight. So there." Ren finished.

"Hello team." Kakashi appeared in a puff of smoke out of nowhere.

"Eh! Kakashi!" The three of them said surprised.

"Hm… What's with you guys?" He asked.

"Ren's got a date tonight!" mused Naruto.

Ren rolled her eyes.

"Oh, who with?" Kakashi asked.

Ren debated telling them the truth about it not being a date, but decided that she did not want the suspicion of her being into Sasuke or Kakashi to continue. "... Kabuto from the chunin exams."

"The loser with the big glasses?" Scoffed Sasuke, his confidence restored. "That's your type?"

"Isn't he a little old for you?" Kakashi asked with an amused twinkle in his eyes.

"COME ON, even old man Kakashi is way cooler than that guy." Naruto said, pointing with both hands towards Kakashi.

Ren refused to continue the conversation. "Alrighty, this has been fun. Sensei, what did you need from us?"

"Actually I'm just here to speak to Sasuke." Kakashi replied. Sasuke nodded.

"Excellent. Then I will see you all tomorrow." Ren said as she waved to her team and headed down the hill to her home, grateful for the escape. Ginko met her at the bottom of the hill. He was never too far away when she finished practice.

* * *

Ren knocked on the apartment door of Kabuto. She had food in one hand and drinks in the other, and almost spilled them when he opened the door.

"Ah Ren, Ginko, come in. Here, Ren let me help you with that."

"Thank you, sir." The cat replied.

"Thanks," Ren said. Kabuto's apartment was quite clean. The desk in the back of the front room was the only thing remotely disorganized. He had an assortment of cords strewn across it. Several cord heads were lined up in order. He'd put a lot of effort into finding the right one she'd guessed.

Ren took off her scarf and jacket and hung it on the hook near the door.

"Could you hand me the music player?" Kabuto asked after he put the drinks on his table.

"Oh yeah of course." Ren fished the phone out of her pocket and handed it over.

Kabuto made a disappointed face after looking at the bottom of the phone. "Ah, just as I figured none of these heads will do the trick." He held up a few to prove his point. "I don't know where your mother bought this music player, but I've never seen a cord head this small… Don't worry though, I think I can jimmy-rig something that'll work."

"That would be great, thanks."

Kabuto worked on making the cord for the next hour and a half while Ren prepared the dinner she'd brought. He stopped occasionally to stretch or make small talk, but mostly stayed to his work which Ren was grateful for. As she had expected, it was pretty easy to talk with Kabuto though. She thought once again about how disappointed she was that he wasn't a good guy so they could be real friends.

They breaked for food. Ren put some in a bowl for Ginko.

"I think I've mostly got it configured. After we eat, I'll plug it in and we can try it out." Kabuto said.

"That would be great. Thanks for your help again." She said as she handed him his bowl and placed the cooking pot in the sink.

"No problem…" He ate a bite. "Wow, you're a good cook! Where'd you learn?"

"Oh, just experimenting over the years." She regretted that particular choice of verb only after she said it.

She flipped the question back on him. "You cook at all?"

"No, no, can't say I find the time for it..."

The conversation continued until Kabuto finished and showed her the final product. It looked a little homemade, but Ren was still impressed.

"Show time." Kabuto said as he plugged in the phone. In a few moments the screen lit up with the charging battery face. Ren couldn't believe it.

"Oh my gosh. It worked. Thank you!" She said.

"No problem. Just let me know if you ever need anything else fixed."

"Will do." She smiled.

Ginko and her packed up their stuff and left soon after. They waved to Kabuto as they reached the bottom of the stairs. He waved back and returned indoors. Ren wondered if he would report his act of charity to his snake friend.

"He seems like a nice fellow." Ginko said to himself as they walked away.

"Yeah, he does." Ren replied, not feeling too confident about her ninneko's discerning skills.

When they made it home Ren plugged the phone in once more and used her passcode to unlock the screen. Nostalgia flooded as she flipped through the app pages. She saw she had two unread messages from her friend Peter. She hesitated and then clicked on them.

They read:

"You comin' over soon?"

"P.S. Don't forget the chips."

As she exited the app she saw the notification bubble disappear and she realized that it might be the last time she would ever have a new message on this phone. The simple thing filled her with emotion over what she had lost. Tears came quietly down the sides of her face as she sat there looking at the screen. Ren closed the phone and wiped her eyes.

"Ms. Ren?" Ren looked over to the side of the couch. Ginko had a tissue in his mouth for her.

She smiled and answered with a stuffy nose, "Thanks Ginko. _Ms. Ren_ now? Look at you being so casual."

"Of course, Ms. anything for you." He sat poised on the seat of the couch next to her after handing her the tissue.

_Maybe he isn't so bad afterall._


	6. Once Upon a December

**Chapter 6 - Once Upon a December**

Liz Callaway

"Okay, give me a break. I don't have as much chakra as you do." Ren said, exhausted. She deactivated her sharingan, bent over and put her hands on her knees to catch her breath. Training with Sasuke was rewarding and she learned a lot, but it kicked her butt every time.

"Besides," She said out of breath, "We have company."

Ren nodded to the right in order to motion to Sasuke about the shaking in the far off tree. "My guess is it's your two girlfriends".

"Those idiots again..."

Ren smiled and stood up straight. "Yeah, what do they even see in you?"

She looked at Sasuke and got a glare in return. He was so fun to tease.

"But maybe, for my sake, you could just ask Sakura on a date. Or give her a wink or something."

"Why the hell would I do that?"

"Well for one- To save me from being hunted down, because that's what friends do. Also, let's be honest with ourselves, you two are going to end up together one day so you might as well just accept your fate now." Ren said as she wiped her hands down.

Sasuke scoffed. "As if."

Ren smiled, Sasuke may play the pretentious bad boy part well but sometimes he was just a regular thirteen-year-old boy.

* * *

_… One less bell to answer_

_One less egg to fry_

_One less man to pick up after_

_I should be happy_

_But all I do is cry_

Ren sang the familiar lyrics to "One Less Bell to Answer" as she showered that morning. Having her music back gave her peace of mind that regular life was not always providing. There had been no update about Orochimaru in over a month. She wished there was something, then at least she could know what to be scared of.

It was nearly New Years and it seemed as though the whole town had burrowed away. She laughed because their version of cold was still quite warm in the land of fire. Ren wished she could burrow away too, but was not afforded that luxury with her current line of work.

She wiped the foggy mirror and stared at her face. Seventeen years old now. She had certainly begun to look more womanly in the past few months. She turned to see her cheekbone and was pleased with the shape of it.

She wrapped herself in a towel and exited the bathroom. She sat at the vanity to dry her hair.

"Hey Gin, have you seen my music player?"

She heard a reply from the other room. The cat walked in with the phone in his mouth. He paused to give her a look and then jumped on the vanity to give her the phone.

"You really should put some clothes on before you call for me…"

Ren gave him a look. "Come on, you're a cat."

"But still, it isn't proper for a young lady." He said as he jumped off the vanity and exited the room. He poked his head back after a moment. "You sang beautifully this morning, as always."

Ren smiled, "Thanks Gin."

She finished getting ready and bundled up to meet her team at the Hokage's office. They were receiving a special mission today, and Ren was still hoping they would make it back in time for the holidays.

When they arrived at the office she was surprised to see a rather eccentric looking man chatting with the Hokage. He looked like he had stepped out of some early 80's pop music video and moved his arms dramatically as he spoke.

"Is that her? Is she the one?" The man pointed to Ren. She looked to her teammates for clarification. They looked as confused as her. The man bounded over to her, got on one knee and kissed her hand.

"Yes, yes! She is perfect." He started kissing her arm aggressively.

The Hokage cleared his throat. The man stopped. "This… Is Ken Yamaguchi. He owns a popular recording studio in a city west of here. He holds a large singing competition every year, but many of the applicants have recently disappeared…." He paused. "We have been hired to discover the cause of these disappearances. Ren, Mr. Yamaguchi has been kind enough to allow you to take a spot in the competition for this purpose. This will allow the rest of you, as her bodyguards, to investigate the kidnappings. Because many who have investigated have also disappeared, this will be a B rank mission."

Naruto gave a happy holler.

"I hear you can sing?" Mr. Yamaguchi chimed.

"... From… who?" Ren asked. Still a little stunned that this was their assignment.

The Hokage answered. "Ginko has mentioned it in his reports." The cat appeared with a poof.

 _Damn cat._ And here they were getting along so well recently. _Pity._

"Please, please sing for us now. I must know whether I can work with your voice."

Ren froze. "Uh…" The hokage nodded for her to sing. "What should I sing?" The room was quiet.

The cat spoke. "What's that song about December?" He said the last word in English. She was surprised he understood the meaning of the lyrics.

She looked at the cat. "Mm." She nodded knowing exactly which song he meant from the animated movie _Anastasia_.

….

Dancing bears,

Painted wings,

Things I almost remember,

And a song someone sings

Once upon a December.

Someone holds me safe and warm.

Horses prance through a silver storm.

Figures dancing gracefully

Across my memory...

Someone holds me safe and warm.

Horses prance through a silver storm.

Figures dancing gracefully

Across my memory...

Far away, long ago,

Glowing dim as an ember,

Things my heart

Used to know,

Things it yearns to remember...

And a song

Someone sings

Once upon a December

Despite her nerves in the beginning and a slip up in the middle, she finished the song strong and she knew she got the part.

Mr. Yamaguchi clapped his hands. "You… are… MAGNIFICENT." She could tell by her teammates' faces that despite not understanding the language that they thought so too.

They headed out straight away that afternoon, although not in any fashion that she had ever been accustomed to. Rather than the tour bus of modern day America, Ren was to ride in a carriage of sorts with her teammates posing as her fashionably dressed guards on the outside. Much to her discomfort Mr. Yamaguchi also sat in the carriage with her. He was fascinated with the song she sang and wanted to hear what other music she suggested. She was selective about which songs she chose to show him, avoiding anything with "suggestive" lyrics.

By the time they had made the two day journey, Yamaguchi had decided on which song she should sing. Because he was not the judge he felt this was appropriate. She didn't think 'appropriate' was in his vocabulary.

She felt a twinge of guilt for singing a song that was certainly not hers, and made sure Mr. Yamaguchi knew to cite the actual artist in the program. She may not have to worry about plagiarism in this world, but it eased her conscious knowing she was giving credit where credit was due.

She was to spend the next three days rehearsing on stage and mingling with the other contestants. Saturday night they were to perform. The whole team was put up in a fancy hotel beyond what any of them had ever before experienced and truthfully the mission felt more like a vacation. Well, at least for the boys.

Ren spent her time investigating the various contestants, and was trained in the "know how" of the performing world. It was overwhelming to say the least. In order to save money they had hoped to fit her into one of the missing singers, Yue's outfits. They were initially quite disappointed to discover that Ren was not quite tall or busty enough to do so being that she was still in a teenager's body. Ren decided that rather than waste the wardrobe she would just use a little genjutsu to alter her appearance a little.

The night of the performance Ren stood in the make up room and smoothed out her dress. She looked much like her old self. It was surprising to see this body again, Taller and more curvy. She had a pair of diamond earrings in and her hair was long and curled. The whole look was more sparkly than she would have prefered, but she couldn't help but feel glamorous.

She heard a knock at the door.

"Come in." she said.

Kakashi walked in dressed in a formal suit for the evening. He put his hands in his pockets and stood near the back wall. "I thought I'd come to wish you luck."

"How do I look?" She asked while swishing the bottom of the dress.

He smiled. "You look lovely." She was grateful Naruto and Sasuke weren't nearby to witness her blush then. He continued. "We've set up a perimeter around the audience's seating. If this guy comes tonight, we'll get him."

"I hope for the missing girls' sake he does."

"Mm." Kakashi nodded. He stood there for a moment, as if he wanted to say something more and then decided against it. "Break a leg tonight."

"Thanks." She replied. He exited.

* * *

As Ren stood on stage awaiting her number suddenly the stage fright sank in. She was the third out of ten performers and she hadn't performed in front of this many people in so long.

They had decided that " _Let it go"_ from Disney's _Frozen_ would be her piece. It was one of the few songs she knew in Japanese. She had actually been in Japan for a trip when the movie came out and she had a hunch that the people of this world would like it as much as Japan had, and with a little genjutsu she figured she could easily please the crowd.

The curtain lifted. Ren saw the hundreds of people in the audience, her stomach tightened. She caught Kakashi's eye in the front row, he smiled at her.

She began the song, feeling very reminiscent of the movie.

"The snow glows white on the mountain tonight…"

As she sang her confidence grew and she knew she had captivated the audience. Her eyes scanned the audience as her powerful voice grew until she saw one familiar face.

Her heart stopped.

Orochimaru sat in the very last row looking more like himself than ever before.

She continued the song, and she was unable to look away from him. He smiled.

"Don't let them in, don't let them see, be the good girl you always have to be…"

Ren blinked her eyes and tried to find Kakashi in the crowd again, but he was gone. She hoped he'd seen Orochimaru too.

She tried to focus on the music, blowing their cover wouldn't help anything. She threw snow at the audience at the right parts and heard people in the crowd give theirs 'Ooos' and 'Ahhhs'.

Ren didn't want to lose his position; her eyes drifted back to Orochimaru's golden eyes as she finished the finale of the song. The crowd clapped loudly and the curtain dropped, breaking the eye contact.

She rushed to the left wing where Sasuke's post was, but he wasn't there.

"Get back onstage!" A crew member whispered loudly. "The curtain's going up in 3, 2…"

Ren moved back to center stage. She greeted her audience with a smile and a bow while panicking internally. She scanned the audience. Orochimaru was gone.

As the curtain closed again she wondered what to do. Bailing in the middle of the concert would look suspicious and was against what Kakashi had said to do in their team briefing beforehand… but being without her team left her so... _vulnerable_.

The concert finished an hour later. Ren ripped her nails in the back the entire time. When the final curtain went up she received second place and a cash price. However she was barely aware. She just hoped her friends were safe.

After the concert the performers gathered on the floor and were greeted by the guests. Ren had many people come up to her and discuss her talent, and two asked to sign a contract deal with her.

"Thank you really, for the offer, but I'm afraid I can't accept."

"Let me know if you ever change your mind." A nice old gentleman had said. He bowed and turned away. Behind him was a man dressed in a white kimono with golden eyes. He approached her with a single white rose.

"You'll have to forgive me. You should have gotten first place, but I fear my influence may have startled you."

She stared into his eyes. Not sure what to say. Unsure of what he was thinking.

"Don't look so worried. I'm only here to congratulate you." He said, smiling mischievously.

"You'll have to forgive me, but the last time we met you took a bite out of my neck." Ren said.

"Well those were much different circumstances." He looked at her intensely. It made her feel like he could read her mind. Ren wondered if everyone felt that way when face to face with Orochimaru.

"Where's my team?" She asked him.

"It seems as though they are occupied with the kidnapper you are all searching for." He looked to his left. Her gaze followed and she could see team seven returning from afar. She felt relieved. Orochimaru looked back to her. "It's unfortunate circumstances, but at least his being here afforded us the chance to speak uninterrupted for a moment."

He handed her the flower and he reached his hand out delicately tucked a group of stray hairs behind her ear before she could react.

"I've considered your offer. You instead of the Uchiha boy."

Ren couldn't believe what she was hearing. She didn't know what to think. Her eyes looked over to her team again. Watching Sasuke.

He put his hand to her chin and moved her face gently to look at him again. He leaned closer then whispered: "And… I can help you get home."

She froze. He gave her one last smile and walked away. Her gaze followed him until he was just part of the sea of people, unrecognizable.

"Ren!"

"Naruto?" She saw him and threw her arms around him tight. The team had returned. Kakashi had an unconscious man slung over him, presumably the target of their mission.

"Woah! You're a REAL woman!" Naruto yelled. With her new height his head came up to her bosom. She regretted the decision and pushed him away.

"Everything okay while we were gone?" Kakashi asked as he shifted his weight and balanced the passed out guy on his shoulder.

"Mm." She nodded hesitantly.

"Did you win?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Second place." She motioned to the medal around her next. "It came with a nice cash prize too."

"I guess that means you're buying dinner, since we did all the hard work." Sasuke added.

"I guess so." she said, forcing a smile.

...

Late that night after dinner she fell asleep near her friends. Her hand held the white rose, and in her sleep she firmly grasped it and bled.


	7. when the party's over

**Chapter 7 - when the party's over**

Billie Eilish

" _Ume, can I take you out to eat tonight?" Orochimaru asked._

_She nodded happily as they walked the cold path. It was dark and snowing outside, unusual weather for Konoha._

" _Last time it snowed was when I met you." She said mostly to herself and looked over to her friend with a smile. But then Ume remembered her parents. She looked down and stopped smiling._

_They stopped at a small udon place. A friendly man who recognized them both offered to bring them out 'the usual'. They sat across from each other. Ume stared out the window at the sky, not sure whether she should enjoy the snow or not._

" _Mm… Ume, I have an important mission coming up."_

_She looked away from the window, and made eye contact with Orochimaru._

" _I'm afraid for this one, I will be gone for a long time." he continued._

_She watched him put down his cup. "Well, that's okay." She replied smiling. "How long?"_

" _A few weeks, months maybe."_

" _Oh, I see…" she paused to think. Sad that he would be gone for so long. "Well, I guess I will just have to entertain myself for a little while." She said._

" _I think it would be best for you to stay with someone else while I am gone."_

" _Orochimaru, I already live on my own quite capably." She straightened her posture and looked at him directly._

_He smiled back at her, keeping eye contact. "Yes, I know."_

_The waiter brought them their food._

" _It's more for your parents' sake that I ask. I want to make sure nothing happens to you while I am gone."_

_They ate their food as Ume considered his words. "Okay. If it will make you feel better, then I will allow it. " She finally said. "With whom, Tsunade-san?"_

" _No," he dismissed quickly. "A friend of mine, Emiko Inuzaka. Actually, she's here." He motioned towards a location behind Ume. Ume looked over her shoulder. A beautiful lady was reading a novel nearby. At the mention of her name she got up from her chair and gave them a wave. She had long luscious hair. It was brown, like Ume's. But her eyes were a stunning green. She wore a red scarf that enhanced her looks._

" _Nice to meet you Ume, I'm Emiko."_

_Ume looked at Orochimaru and then back to Emiko._

" _Nice to meet you, Emiko." Ume stood and bowed her head to show respect._

" _I heard you recently became a chunin, ne?" Emiko asked.  
_

" _Yes. A couple months ago actually."_

" _Wow, you are quite young. Surely, thanks to your Sensei." Emiko said as she leaned back in her new chair besides Orochimaru and put her book on the table. The book had two attractive people locked in a passionate kiss on the cover. Ume looked from the book to the woman, she had an air of confidence about her that was intriguing to the young girl._

" _No, I'm afraid it's none of my doing." Orochimaru responded. Ume smiled._

_As the dinner continued on, Ume studied Emiko. She had genuine eyes that wrinkled when she smiled and a good laugh. Emiko was pretty much everything that any ten-year-old wanted to be when they grew up._

_They said goodbye and parted ways after arranging the details of Ume's stay with Emiko. Emiko would take over Orochimaru's mentoring responsibilities while he was fulfilling his duties on the mission._

_Orochimaru and Ume walked in silence back to her apartment._

_Ume sighed._

" _Orochimaru, I have to say: I approve of Emiko sensei. As much as I don't want to admit it, she is practically perfect, and if you want to date her, you have my blessing."_

_Orochimaru stopped walking and Ume bumped into him. He turned around smiling to face her._

_He chuckled to himself. "Emiko is just a friend." He brushed her bangs out of her face and tucked them behind her ears. "She's engaged."_

" _Oh." Ume said as her cheeks got pink. "Well, sorry you missed your chance. I guess you'll have to find someone else, sensei."_

_His eyes squinted as he smiled back. "I guess I will."_

* * *

_Ren…_

_Ren…_

_REN._

"REN! WAKE UP!"

"What… huh?!" Ren sat up and rubbed her eyes.

Naruto burst out in tears and was doubled over in laughter. "HAHAHAHAHA! I can't- HAHAHA!"

"What's so funny?!" She demanded.

Even Sasuke was smiling to himself. "You're such an embarrassment...", he said.

Ren looked to Kakashi, but he seemed to be purposely avoiding her glance by staring at his book intently.

Ren was getting angry. "Naruto! Just tell me what you are laughing at!"

It took a few moments for the blonde to catch his breath. He made a very girly face and stated: "I guess you'll have to find someone else, _sensei._ " He blinked his eyelids in a seductive manner. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Ren's cheeks flushed pink.

"It's not what you think! You idiot!" She yelled.

But Naruto wouldn't have it. As far as he was concerned they had pure gold proof of her fondness of Kakashi.

"You were smiling too! What kind of dream were you having Ren-chan?" Naruto continued as he elbowed her ribs.

"Perhaps if you want to confess your love to me, next time you should do it in private..." Kakashi stated unemotionally as he continued to read his book.

Both boys laughed at that.

Kakashi spoke again ending the humiliation for Ren. "That's all for today guys. See you all tomorrow."

Ren was ready to make a run for it.

"Except for you." Kakashi grabbed the back of Ren's backpack, holding her in place. "Let's have a chat."

The two boys left with snickers in their faces. "Good luck with that confession, Ren." Naruto whisper-yelled.

...

"Ja, how've you been?" Kakashi asked.

She gave him a look. "I'm... alive."

"Ren, that's the third time you've fallen asleep during training… am I really that boring?"

"Yeah, I know. I mean, no of course not." She scratched the back of her neck. "I just haven't been sleeping well recently."

"... Still having _those_ dreams?" He asked.

Ren nodded. She had decided to tell Kakashi about some of them after returning from the last mission. These 'visions' were happening more frequently now, and he was good at keeping her grounded.

"Same as always, just days in her regular life." Ren said as she looked down the hill. The sun was setting and there was a brisk wind today. "They're just so vivid. Sometimes I can't tell the difference between what Ume is feeling and what I feel..." She felt a shiver up her spine. "Makes me nervous to sleep."

"Does having the ninneko there help at all?" He asked.

She shook her head. "He's a nice cat and all, but it's not like he could protect me from one of the sannin."

"No, I guess not."

"... Sometimes when I wake up from the dreams, I swear I see Orochimaru in my room. Sitting at my bedside as I sleep." Ren said.

Kakashi's eyebrows furrowed.

"But, it's just as I am in between dreams. As soon as I blink he's gone." She added for his concern.

She realized she had said too much.

"Mm." He said.

She tried to steer the conversation away from Orochimaru. "Recently the dreams have featured a new person. Do you know an 'Emiko' perchance?"

"Do you have a last name?" Kakashi asked.

"It was Inu… Inuzaka I think? She had long brown hair, and green eyes."

Kakashi said nothing.

_Maybe Emiko was just an imagination too…_

"Well, I'm sure it's okay." Ren said, not wanting to speak any longer on it. "Will you be at Iruka's new year's party tomorrow?"

"Yeah... See you there?" he responded, though distracted it seemed.

"Mm, see you there."

* * *

Late that night after he'd checked for the last time at Ren's house for intruders, Kakashi walked into his apartment. It was a clean space, though quite bare. He put the bag of groceries on the table and moved the milk to the fridge.

Afterwards he went into his bedroom and laid on the bed, staring up at the ceiling for a few minutes. He could hear his neighbor's dog barking out the window as the cold breeze came in. Eventually his eye looked to the left where a wooden box was placed that had been collecting dust for years.

Kakashi sat up. He stretched his neck and stood up to grab the box. After dusting off the top he sat back down on his bed. He ran his hands over the edges and unlatched the front. The hinge creaked open. Inside was an old red scarf of his mother's he used to wear, and a couple of mementos from his past. He removed the scarf first, holding it to his face to see if it still smelled like his mother. It did not.

As he removed the other items one by one he came upon several photos at the bottom.

He picked up the photos and placed the box aside on his bed. There was one photo of his family before his mother died. He was quite young then, and they all looked very happy. Another photo was just of him and his father... As he reminisced he came across the picture that he was looking for.

In the photo a very young Kakashi was sitting next to a smiling girl he hadn't remembered in years.

_Ume._

* * *

_Ume waited at the Hatake doorstep._

" _I'm coming, I'm coming!" She heard a young voice yell from down the hallway._

_The door opened. A small white haired boy barely three-years-old stood at the front. He was wearing a mask on his face although the weather was hot._

" _Hi, Ume." He said._

" _Hey, Kakashi." Ume smiled and squatted down next to the little boy. "The mask looks good on you." She messed with his unruly hair. Small pink cheeks could be seen through the oversized mask._

" _Yeah, I can't get him to_ _ **ever**_ _take it off." Emiko said as she walked behind her son and shook her head disapprovingly. She picked up the child and held him on her hip. "He tells me it's important. I wonder who could have put that idea in his head. Hmm, Ume?"_

_Ume laughed. "Well he's right." She directed her attention towards Kakashi and put her hand up to obscure her mouth from his mother. "Don't listen to her, Kakashi." Ume said as she winked at the child. His warm cheeks flushed and he turned into his mother's arm, embarrassed. Emiko stroked her son's head._

" _Time for a nap eh, Kakashi?" Emiko asked._

…

_Ume busied herself in the front room looking at the pictures on the wall while Emiko put Kakashi down for his nap. She stopped on a picture of the little boy as a one-year-old baby. His face was covered in rice, but he maintained a serious face in the photo. His seriousness contrasted so much with his chubby baby cheeks that it made Ume laugh._

" _...You know he was exhausted, but refused to lay down until you came." Emiko said, entering the room again._

_Ume smiled. "Well that's because we're best friends."_

" _Ha. I don't know how you did it Ume, but you've got that child wrapped around your finger. Maybe he'll be lucky enough to have you as his sensei one day."_

" _Maybe one day." Ume replied._

* * *

Ren stood nervously on Iruka sensei's doorstep, gift in hand. The dream she'd had last night disturbed her more than the others. She didn't know whether these were Ume's memories or if Orochimaru was just messing with her mind and now inserting her friends into these visions to manipulate her. Regardless, she didn't feel comfortable discussing this one with Kakashi. It might bring up painful memories for him. She wasn't sure how he lost his mother, but the fact that he didn't mention that her name was Emiko yesterday let Ren know that if it was real, it was a touchy subject.

"Welcome Ren! Glad you could make it." Iruka sensei said smiling.

"Of course, I wouldn't miss it."

Inside Shikamaru saw and waved her over. "Oi, what have you been up to Ren?"

"Keeping Naruto in line, the usual. You?"

"Dealing with those two, _the usual_." he said as Ren looked to see both Ino and Sakura on either side of Sasuke's arm attempting flattery.

She laughed. "Congrats on winning the chunin exams. You deserved it."

He shrugged his shoulders. "I'm just glad it is over with."

Choji came by then and offered them plates of food. "Eat up!" he said.

Ren looked around the room and saw many ninja she did not recognize. Iruka sensei had a lot of friends it seemed. She smiled and tried to put last night's dream events to the back of her mind and just enjoy the party.

Choji shared stories that made both her and Shikamaru laugh. Shikamaru told her about the schemes Ino and Sakura had been planning to 'woo' Sasuke next. Ren rolled her eyes and thought about how much she missed spending time with these two in class.

"You should be careful Ren, those girls see you as a real threat to Sasuke." Choji said.

"Yeah I know, though I don't see why… thirteen-year-old boys aren't really my thing." She responded and took a drink of the soda she had.

"You're what, sixteen?" Shikamaru asked while comparing heights. Ren was still taller than the both of them.

"Seventeen."

Ren saw Kakashi leaning against a wall by himself. He gave her a wave. She excused herself from her friends and walked towards him.

"I heard you had a late night." she said as she approached him.

"From who?" Kakashi asked. Iruka sensei brought by a tray with some snacks. They both put some on their plates.

"The cat. He said you were on the roof most of the night." She smiled at him. "Thanks."

"Mm." They spent some time in silence while Ren ate her food.

"Ja… Ren. Emiko is... my mother." Kakashi said out of nowhere. He pulled a picture from his jacket. In the picture Ren was squatting down next a young Kakashi. He was maybe three years old, and had the same stoic masked face as always.

As Ren looked her eyes widened and she came to the sickening realization that these were not just made up dreams from Orochimaru but actual memories of a real girl who existed. And that that girl just might be her.


	8. Let Me Don't Slowly

**Chapter 8 - Let Me Down Slowly**

Alec Benjamin

Ren struggled to find the keys to her house. They were buried deep in the grocery bag and the rain was soaking both her and Ginko at the doorstep. She had never met a cat that was okay being cold and wet, but I guess there was a first for everything.

"Sorry Gin." She replied as she finally got a hold of the key. "I really should get a purse." She opened the door and waited, but Ginko only sat and waited patiently for her to enter first.

Ren entered the threshold and the cat followed close behind her. "I appreciate your sense of propriety, but you really are allowed to loosen up and enter first." She reminded him. She put the soaked grocery bag on the table and threw him a hand towel to dry himself off then grabbed one for herself.

Ren dabbed her face and ran the towel through her hair. She looked at the wet counter top and debated emptying the grocery bag, deciding instead to lay on her small couch and deal with it later.

"What a strange day..." Ren pulled her hair band out and let her hair lay over the arm of the couch.

The cat perked up his ears.

"Oh? What happened?"

"Well… believe it or not Kakashi sensei kissed a woman today." Ren said as she played with her hair tie.

The cat's tail rose. "Oh?... Did that bother you?"

Ren gave the cat a side glance. "Yes… but not for the reason you're implying."

"You addressed him as sensei, when's the last time you did that?" The cat asked.

Ren stared Ginko down. His tail swished back and forth. He was such an odd animal, and so observant. It reminded Ren of why she had chosen to be so careful around him.

She looked away. Ren thought of how her comrades had bullied her into spying on their mentor today as he interacted with the gypsy-like woman, Hanare. What had really been odd for Ren was that she had remembered this interaction vaguely from a filler episode of Naruto, and it was never something canon in the manga as far as she remembered. Worse yet, what she did remember was that Hanare was outed as a spy and left at the end of that very short episode. That hadn't happened today. Instead, Hanare and Kakashi had shared dinner together and he dropped her off at a hotel.

For the past several months Ren had been sorting the fragments of knowledge in her head. She had so far relied only on what she had read in the manga, figuring that the fillers in the anime had been way off. And yet today had shown that they did have some validity… Ren realized she had to re-sort her information and not assume that any of it was out of the picture...

She breathed out, exhausted at the thought and noticed that the cat was still staring at her. "If you are wanting a love confession, you are going to be disappointed like everyone else." She said and went back to playing with her hair tie. "Sorry, there isn't much more to the story."

"And yet… you were acting strange even this morning. Truthfully this whole week." The cat posed, trying to milk more of an answer.

"Oh yes, well you know…"

"What are you really thinking about miss Ren?" Ginko asked as he moved to the bookshelf nearby, his tail swishing around. That cat was incessant on harassing her today.

Ren remained silent. He was right. Ever since she found out about the knowledge of Kakashi's mother she had been completely restless. Things felt a little strange between her and Kakashi now. They used to talk regularly, and now it seemed as though he would make excuses whenever she asked to chat after training. These dreams, now happening daily, were weighing on her and without someone to talk to about them she felt like she was slipping away in the rising flood known as Ume.

For example a few days ago after walking home from training with Sasuke she unintentionally took a detour with Ginko. She had been so engrossed in the conversation that she didn't even notice when she found herself walking by default to Ume's old apartment. It had really disturbed her.

Ren wanted to go back to her old world. Back where life was simple and she didn't have an identical clone whose memories constantly plagued her.

"You haven't slept much recently, have you. Are you feeling ill?" Ginko asked. Ren almost missed how he acted in the beginning. He may have constantly interrogated her about her whereabouts but at least her mind was hers then.

"No, I suppose you are right. I am feeling under the weather." She said.

"Perhaps you should stay in and rest this evening?"

If only it were that simple. "I wish I could, but every time I close my eyes I see… _him_." The cat was intrigued. If she were more alert she would have regretted telling him. "Look, I know you're my personal spy for the council but maybe today you can lay off a little and just be my friend." She said more aggressively than she intended and moved to lay down on the bed.

"I've always been your friend, Ms Ren."

She looked at the cat and felt bad for her words. His tail still swished about and his face was expressionless.

"Since you are so curious, I'll tell you what's been on my mind." Ren began.

"Every night I have these dreams. Mostly they are harmless, even boring, like conversations while walking to the market or training sessions… but sometimes they are more… impactful."

She realized she was fidgeting her fingers and forced herself to stop.

"About a week ago I dreamt of being sick. In the dream I just felt miserable, coughing, sneezing... But Orochimaru -" She said the name slowly and looked up at the cat to gauge his reaction. "- came and took care of me. He made me soup, replaced my box of tissues, and then he stayed by my side afterward and didn't leave. He just sat on the tatami next to my futon the entire night, occasionally brushing hair out of my eyes and checking my temperature." Her hand moved to the side of her bed as if illustrating where he would have sat.

Ren looked away, feeling emotional just describing it. "It's stupid that it affected me so much. But truthfully I was just so grateful to have someone… care." She cleared her throat. "So, it's terrible because I know more than most exactly the horrible things Orochimaru has done and is doing, but - I also can't deny that I was very sad to have to wake up from that dream."

She avoided eye contact with Ginko. His yellow cat eyes were too similar to a pair she didn't want to think about.

"I think you're right Gin, I'm gonna stay in and try to rest. Would you mind staying by in case my dreams become nightmares?"

"Of course Ms. Ren."

"Thanks."

* * *

" _Ume you are beautiful." Emiko said as she finished tying up Ume's Obi. They both looked in the mirror across from them. "You look like a real woman now." Ume straightened her back and made a serious face in the mirror._

_They laughed._

" _Thank you for doing my hair Emiko. I appreciate it."_

" _Of course. No problem. Right, Kakashi?" Emiko asked. The young boy who was peeking from behind the door swiftly left._

" _That means, 'yes'." Emiko said._

" _I should be going. The festival's begun." Ume said._

" _Have a good night Ume." Sakumo Hatake offered as he walked into the room and stood near his wife. He had Kakashi in his arms._

_The little boy gave her a small wave. Ume returned the wave and left the house._

_The night was dark, but she could see a faint glow of lanterns in the near distance._

_Ume drank in the night. Festivals were her favorite; Especially this one. She heard a loud laugh in the distance. Jiraiya was "attempting" to flirt with two women. They quickly pretended to be busy and left his presence. The man sat down and took a drink of something strong._

" _Oh well, next time then..." She could hear him say. He squinted in Ume's direction. "Oi? Ume! Is that you?" She offered a wave to him. He walked over to where she was standing. "Look at you tonight! You're beautiful. For a second there I was gonna make you my next target." He said as he elbowed her side._

_Ume rolled her eyes. "Jiraiya, predictable as ever."_

" _Now don't say that, you sound like Orochimaru." He laughed. "Speaking of which… where is he?"_

" _He's been gone for a few weeks on a mission."_

" _Of course. Hm. I barely made it home myself you know. Things are pretty bad out right now…" Jiraiya added solemnly. "But, never mind that. Tonight is one for celebration, right?" His gaze locked on a particularly mysterious blonde in the distance. "And I plan on celebrating… Excuse me Ume…"_

_She shook her head smiling and continued her path. The air was still brisk outside, and she was grateful for the thick kimono._

_It was March 2nd, her birthday._

_Fifteen years old._

_Ume joined her peers dressed in similar kimono. They chatted in the cold of food and fun memories. Times were rough, war was everywhere, but tonight they would leave that all behind and enjoy themselves._

_They were doing a dance to celebrate the Ume Matsuri this evening._

" _Mikoto you look beautiful tonight." Ume said._

_The reserved girl smiled in return. "You too Ume." As the other girls were chatting, Mikoto opened up her purse and handed Ume a small wrapped parcel._

" _Happy birthday." She said._

_Ume was surprised. "Thank you." She opened the gift tenderly and pulled out a pair of ume blossom earrings. "These are beautiful."_

_Mikoto gave a modest smile._

_Ume put the earrings on. She thought of how interesting it was that her only friend near her age was an Uchiha. But although she was sworn to keep that part of her life a secret, Ume couldn't help but be drawn to the Uchiha. Mikoto was a distant cousin of hers, and the thought of having family nearly brought tears to her eyes. Even if she was the only one who knew._

" _Really, thank you."_

_The dance began soon after. The girls took their places. Music began to play. They moved elegantly into their poses. They had practiced this for months. With the war going on, their dance instructor had insisted that these girls make this evening excellent and relaxing for all who came._

_Ume moved gracefully into a position that faced the audience. She was not the main dancer by any means, but in this piece everyone's effort to be in sync was equally important. Her eye caught hold of a white kimono in the distance. A pair of golden eyes she'd recognize anywhere smiled at her._

_Orochimaru._

_Ume's effort to make a flawless performance increased. They moved together as one. The audience was entranced._

_As the piece finished Ume knew they had done their part. As soon as she could, she left the stage and sought after Orochimaru._

" _Orochan." She failed to contain her excitement and she approached the man. "I didn't think you would make it."_

_His smile warmed her soul. "I couldn't miss your birthday."_

_People began to noisily surround them with the various festivities._

" _Come with me." Orochimaru offered. "I have something to show you."_

_They walked away from the festivities._

" _How were your travels?" She asked._

_He thought for a while before answering. By his expression Ume almost regretted asking. "Not nearly as pleasant as being with you. However, they opened my eyes to what's important."_

_They walked to a bridge on the edge of town. A small river trickled underneath them as they stood in the center of the bridge._

_Ume looked over the edge at the fish in the water._

" _Ume, I have something for you." Orochimaru said._

_He grabbed something from his pocket and pulled out her mother's necklace._

_She gasped._

" _I- I thought it was gone."_

" _I've kept it safe for you for these past years." He walked around to the back of her and hooked the necklace around her neck. "But- seeing you tonight, I realized you aren't a little girl anymore. It is time for you to keep it."_

_She turned around to face him with tears in her eyes. She couldn't be happier._


	9. Supalonely

**Chapter 9 - Supalonely**

Benee

_Ume had large flasks and was mixing an assortment of chemicals together. She heard the door open and Orochimaru's voice._

" _I didn't expect you here this early. I thought you would be observing the birds right about now." Orochimaru said._

_He walked in closer and picked up her lab notebook which had been left open on the ground._

" _Well, we were out of buffer so I thought I'd come back early and mix some up. And... I think I am done with the bird project." Ume replied. She kept her eyes on the chemicals._

" _I'm surprised to hear that. You seemed so intrigued recently with it." Orochimaru said as he flipped through her notebook where detailed drawings and observations of the birds had been recorded._

" _I'm just tired of it." She replied. Ume finished swirling the liquids in the flask and placed a lid on top. "The last of the mixed baby chicks died today, so… what's the point."_

_Ume walked over to the fridge and put the flask in. When the fridge door closed she finally looked at Orochimaru. She didn't try to mask her disappointment. "It seems that there is no niche available for the children of the large beaked birds and the thin beaked birds. They are just too different to survive. The offspring don't have big enough beaks to break the nuts, nor are their breaks thin enough to get the insects in the flowers. So they starve to death… every time." She said frustratedly. Her eyes were hinting at tears._

" _Hmm." Orochimaru replied. "I'm sorry to hear that."_

_Ume took her gloves off and threw them in the trash can. "Sorry, I didn't mean to leave that on the ground." She said, referring to her notebook._

_Orochimaru put the book on the counter. "Can I show you something?" he asked._

" _Sure." She said._

_Orochimaru pulled out a large textbook from one of the shelves nearby and laid it out on a clean counter. He flipped to a page that had pictures of brown and gray snakes. Ume walked over to where he was standing._

" _On this island there existed two species of snakes for many years. One species was gray and the other was brown. They had different niches and generally avoided interactions. But one year there was a large famine on the island and much of the prey for both kinds died. Because of this, the snake's niches overlapped and some interbreeding happened." He flipped the page and his finger pointed to a snake that was speckled brown and gray. "As it turned out, their mixed offspring blended in much better in the rocky environment of the island than either of the parent species and soon dominated the island."_

_Ume touched the picture._

_Orochimaru put his hand under Ume's chin and lifted her head up. "Remember my dear, you are not a bird, you are a snake."_

_Ume looked at him and smiled._

* * *

"Awww I love Taiyaki. Ren, you want one?" Naruto asked.

"Sure, thanks." Ren said. She, Sasuke and Naruto had just finished a mission together and were celebrating with some dessert. Because Sasuke was a chunin they no longer needed Kakashi to accompany them on every mission anymore.

"Hey have you guys seen the new Yukie Fujikaze movie yet?" Naruto asked them.

"No. It looks stupid." replied Sasuke before taking a bite into the taiyaki.

"What?! It looks _awesome_." Naruto said. "Come on, Ren, back me up here."

"Meh." Ren said. "But I'm kind of picky about movies, so…"

"Okay… Well what kind do you like then?" Naruto asked.

Ren finished chewing her taiyaki. "There's this movie called GATTACA that I really liked. It's a futuristic one where genetically enhanced people are the norm." she laughed to herself. "Although it's kind of ironic."

"Why is that ironic?" Sasuke asked.

"Well, I enjoyed the movie because I identified with the protagonist, and yet it's also what inspired me to become a geneticist." She chewed. "The geneticists are kind of the villains in the movie..." Sasuke gave her a curious look; Ren never talked about her past. "Anyway the moral of the movie is that willpower is more important than the genes you are born with. You'd probably like it, Naruto."

"Yeah, probably…" He said, not exactly sure what she was talking about.

"Can I have another taiyaki?" Ren asked.

"Yeah sure." He handed her another fish shaped dessert.

"Thanks." she said, taking a bite. "So… what do you two think of Kakashi sensei's new girlfriend?"

"Hanare? I dunno, she seems pretty cool…" Naruto.

"To be honest, she is kind of suspicious to me." Sasuke answered.

"Right?" Ren replied eagerly pointing with the dessert to emphasize. "I guarantee you she is a spy."

It had been nearly two weeks and alas here they were; Hanare was still residing in Konoha, officially as of yesterday, dating their teacher.

"You two are wrong. We watched them that entire first day and there was nothing fishy about her except her good looks." Naruto said, mouth half-full.

Sasuke turned to Ren and spoke. "Maybe that's why Kakashi doesn't see it."

Ren replied quickly. "No way. You think Kakashi would be blinded by someone for their beauty? Come on, he's much smarter than that."

"I dunno Ren, beauty blinds people. That's why my sexy jutsu is so powerful." Naruto said. "But if you wanna win Kakashi sensei over, I can teach you my tricks…"

"I don't want to win him over." Ren stated. "I just don't understand how they are _still_ together…"

Sasuke and Naruto both gave her looks implying the reason why they were still together.

"Oh shut up!" Ren stood up. "And I don't need advice on how to be sexy from a thirteen-year-old boy thank you very much!"

* * *

Ren stared into her vanity mirror. She couldn't believe she had let Naruto come and give her a quote: "sexy lesson". What was happening to her? Wasn't she a confident twenty-four-year-old woman? She reckoned that it was these teenage hormones she had been forced to endure for the second time in her life that manipulated her to do it.

"You know, I thought you would overdo it, but it's actually really well done." she said. "You've done your research, Naruto." She moved her hair behind her ear. She certainly looked older- or well, her _actual_ age.

"You better believe it!" He gave her a large grin and thumbs up. "Now we gotta try it out in town! I'll bet you'll have several guys come and ask for your number."

"No way… I'm not going to leave the house looking like this." Ren said. "People will… notice." She looked down at the tight top she was wearing.

"Wasn't that the point in enduring it?" Sasuke said. He had tagged along for who-knows-why and was sitting nearby observing the cat.

"Come on Ren! Just one quick walk through town and you'll get so many compliments you'll never go back to being so plain." Naruto said.

Ren debated it. It had been so long since she had been desired by anyone, let alone kissed another person… Truthfully seeing Kakashi and Hanare had made her so envious. She was fine being alone when they were alone together, but now that Kakashi had someone Ren really felt the emptiness. And as much as she tried to fill it with food and the company to two teenage boys, it just wasn't the same. The thought of having someone romantically desire her again was quite tempting.

"Okay, just a quick walk through town." She replied.

Less than thirty minutes later the three of them were walking through the heart of town. Ren was pleasantly surprised to find that she did receive more attention than normal even if most of it was from men she had no desire to interact with. At least she didn't feel like a baby teenager for once, which was refreshing.

After a few freebie treats Ren turned her head and spoke to her friends while walking, "Okay, I'll admit that was fun, but can we head back?"

"Sure, right after this one." Naruto replied giggling.

"This one?" She asked.

"Ren?"

Kakashi's voice. She turned her head back around to find that she was about to run into him and Hanare. She stopped herself in time and backed up a bit.

They were holding hands. Ren looked from their hands to Kakashi's face. He immediately let go of Hanare's hand.

Hanare looked at Ren's new attire then made eye contact with her. A small innocent enough smile appeared on her face. Ren had her suspicions about what she was thinking. _This girl tried to dress up to impress teacher_. Even though that thought was wrong, Ren knew there was no redemption from it. Hanare turned to Kakashi and said, "I'll go save us a seat." Obviously not threatened whatsoever.

Ren felt suddenly like she was really just seventeen again. Where had all her recently restored confidence gone?

"Sorry sensei, we didn't mean to interrupt your date," she said. "The guys and I are just out on town." She referenced her teammates, but when she turned around they were gone. "Eh… Anyway, I'll let you get back to your fun." She offered him a smile.

"Actually Ren… before you go can I talk with you for a second?" Kakashi asked.

"Sure." She said. Relieved to finally have a moment to chat.

He looked uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry I have been avoiding you… I don't mean it… It's just… you know."

"Yeah, no I get it." She said lightly. "You've got a new girlfriend. I'm an older female student. Spending time together looks bad…"

"No it's not that..." He scratched the back of his head while looking for words. "It's actually about your dreams. The truth is they just bring back memories. And... They are hard to hear..."

Ren's stomach lurched when she heard him speak that last sentence. She never meant to cause Kakashi pain. "Yeah, of course." She said solemnly.

He continued. "Just give me some time and … you know, then we can talk through them again."

She covered up her feelings of guilt with some humor and punched him in the arm lightly. "Don't look so down. It's okay, I've got other people to talk with, so you don't need to do that at all."

"Really?" He looked up, hopeful. She hadn't realized how much of a personal strain they had been for him. Her heart ached.

"Of course! Look I'm good." She refenced her outfit. "I'm out for a fun time, and there hasn't even been any dreams for a while. So please don't worry about me, and don't worry about hearing them again. Please just enjoy yourself."

He looked relieved. "Thanks for understanding, I really appreciate it, Ren."

"Hey, that's what friends are for right?" She said. "Now, go have a great night with Hanare."

He nodded, smiling with his one eye.

He walked towards the restaurant and sat down next to his girlfriend as Ren gave him a wave goodbye.

"How'd it go?" she heard Naruto ask. He peeked his head out from under a barrel nearby.

Ren's smile faded. "I'm going home guys."

* * *

"This is the last of it." Ren handed the Hokage a manila folder with all the names and personal profiles of the Akatsuki members that she remembered.

The Third Hokage looked as though he had aged ten years in the last hour as she confessed the useful secrets she knew regarding the Akatsuki. He looked up at her. "You do realize Ren, the danger that comes with giving all this information? If the Akatsuki assumes you are responsible they'll target you especially."

"I know sir." Her arm remained extended with the folder out towards him.

He took the file and flipped through the pages. Ren watched as he scanned the pages. He came to Deidara's page. It had a detailed picture with an assortment of random facts including height, weight, and background with Itachi.

_Well. He was one of my favorites._

It was kind of embarrassing. Ren knew if she met Deidara now she wouldn't hesitate attacking him. How interesting that her opinion changed so drastically when viewing him in real life verses from a far off world's distance. She felt a little ashamed for wasting so much time on him and the other members, but what can you do? At least it was paying off now.

"Do you have any questions?" She asked him.

The Third finished looking at the folder and then closed it on his desk. "No, I'm just... surprised."

"I came from a strange world, sir. Hopefully this will be useful to you." Ren meant it. So far she had just been screwing up everything in this world, but at least with this information on the Akatsuki maybe they could save some lives.

"Thank you Ren."

"Of course, anything I can do to help." She bowed and left the room.

Ginko was waiting outside for her.

"Did you have a productive visit with the Hokage?" He asked.

"Oh yes."

His tail flicked in sharp patterns, a sign she had come to know that meant he was concerned. But most of the things she said in the past few days seemed to concern him.

* * *

As Ren sat there with her friends later that night at Naruto's beloved ramen shop, she felt distant. Sasuke was mocking Naruto on something he'd said earlier and Naruto was getting dramatically upset about it. Kakashi was laughing as he tried helplessly to break up the fight. His uncovered eye tilted upward letting you know he was smiling underneath.

Oh how she loved that smile.

Ren looked down and stirred her ramen with her chopsticks. Soon even Kakashi would know that she had kept secrets from him since she also told the Hokage about the masked Obito. But it would be the last thing she would do to hurt him.

Before dinner she had stopped by Kabuto's apartment so she could drop off a note. It said only four words: "Tell him I accept".

She needed to talk to Orochimaru.

He was the only one who could help her.

Ren would miss her team. More than her heart could express, but she couldn't be here anymore, not as this incomplete person with no purpose.

She needed answers.

She needed to get back home.


	10. Holding Out For a Hero

**Chapter 10 - Holding Out for a Hero**

Frou Frou version

It felt like giant footsteps; subtle but strong.

_Boom_

_Boom_

Ren slowly woke up. "... Ginko?" She groggily said. With no response, Ren opened her eyes and looked around for the cat.

She saw a tall shadow standing against her wall dressed in familiar looking ninja jounin gear. His arms were folded across his chest as he leaned against the back wall. Her eyes adjusted and she could see the reflection of his golden eyes.

"Orochimaru?" she asked though knowing she was correct. She hated how her body instinctively relaxed upon realization of who was in the room, as if their interaction in the forest of death had never occured.

The man offered a brief smile which then faded into a straight line as though he were displeased.

"Where's my cat?" Ren asked, nervous for Ginko's well-being.

_Boom_

"I'm afraid you have bigger things to worry about now." Orochimaru said.

"What… What is happening outside?" She got out of bed, turned away from him and checked the window. There was a fire in the distance. She could see shinobi silhouettes jumping around the rumble.

Ren backed away from the window wide eyed.

"The Akatsuki have come for you." He said.

"How many?" She asked.

"…Two teams worth."

Her heart stopped. This was not how she wanted this to go. Ren was supposed to leave the leaf, then the Akatsuki could chase her all they pleased... She had only given that information two weeks ago. Surely it couldn't have leaked that fast. She looked back at Orochimaru, her legs felt like they were going to buckle.

"If you wanted to get my attention, you need only to have asked, Ms Ren." He wasn't smiling; obviously not impressed with her reckless actions before contacting Kabuto about their deal.

_Ms Ren?_

Ren couldn't believe it. Him... Ginko… _For how long?_

She didn't get time to think about it. He grabbed her bag of essentials and backpack from the old world.

"Come with me." He said. She obeyed and followed him out, not sure exactly what her plan was.

As they exited the house Ren headed toward the flames. Her mind was everywhere. What had she done? Were her loved ones safe? Orochimaru grabbed her shoulder. "They won't leave until you are out of the village." He spoke.

She looked back her brow furrowed. "But they have to know that I'm leaving…"

"Yes, but not this way." His grip remained firm.

She got angry. "Orochimaru, I'm not just go-" He pinched his grip on her shoulder. She lost consciousness immediately.

Orochimaru picked up her body, hoisted her over his shoulder, and headed in the opposite direction.

"I'm afraid your friends are not as important to me." He said to himself.

He weaved skillfully through the town he once called his home. He looked like any other Jonin carrying an injured loved one. No one blinked an eye amid the commotion. As he neared the edge of town someone jumped in front of him.

Orochimaru smiled to himself. "… So we meet again, _Sensei_?" He said.

"Leave the girl, Orochimaru." The third Hokage said.

"I'm afraid I can no longer trust you to take care of her."

The third's eyes narrowed. "You were the one who invited them here."

Orochimaru gave a grin. "No, I'm afraid not."

An explosion was heard in the back.

The third gritted his teeth and lunged at Orochimaru. Orochimaru jumped high and dodged the attack.

"Tsk tsk, now sensei you wouldn't want to hurt the girl now would you?" Orochimaru descended and laid Ren next to a nearby tree. He turned and faced the Hokage.

"Now where were we?"

* * *

Kakashi was passing a red haired shinobi using puppets to attack the leaf. The man had insisted they came for the future-telling-girl and would peacefully leave once obtaining her.

That didn't sit well.

Kakashi heard a loud sound from the direction of Ren's apartment. He ran towards it. As he made it to the other side he saw the third Hokage on the ground. Ren was nowhere in sight.

"Hokage-Sama!" Kakashi yelled. He knelt next to him and put his arms underneath the Hokage. Kakashi could feel the sticky blood of Hiruzen Sarutobi pool around him. The Hokage gasped in Kakashi's arm and the light left his eyes.

"No!"

* * *

_Ren was running. She didn't know from whom, only that she had to get out. Tree branches kept smacking her in the face. The sun was setting fast. She heard a loud roar from behind. Whatever it was, it was coming for her._

_Ren saw a cliff in the distance. She kept going and jumped. For a moment it seemed as though she was flying._

_And then she started falling._

_Panic hit._

_Falling._

_Falling._

* * *

Ren awoke with a gasp. She sat up quickly.

"You're alright."

Ren recognized Orochimaru's voice. He was sitting on a chair near the bed she was on. She blinked several times but he was blurry. Her head was pounding. What was wrong with her? The only thing she could tell was that they were in a dimly lit room with no windows.

"...Where... am I?" Ren struggled to ask.

The vaguely outlined Orochimaru moved a hand closer to her and moved her hair out of her face. The gesture was too intimate, but she felt too out of it to react in time. She tried to speak. The words were getting stuck. She couldn't remember how she had gotten here.

_Was this an Ume dream? No…_

"The Akatsuki attacked your village. Do you remember?" He asked.

She shook her head quickly. She regretted the movement as nausea swept over her. She held her head in her hands.

"My team... are they okay?"

"They should be. The Akatsuki only wanted you, so I imagined they left as soon as they realized you were gone." Orochimaru said as his hand made its way back to her face. This time there was a cool wet cloth in it that he used to dap her sweaty forehead. It felt nice… She wanted to go back to sleep. She fought the feeling.

"…How did you get me?" She lifted her head up gradually to make eye contact. He slowly came into focus.

He softly spoke. "… The Leaf couldn't protect you any longer."

Ren felt overwhelmed. Her head was spinning. Maybe she'd been drugged. She leaned forward, looked down again and rubbed her temples.

"I think I'm going to be sick." She said.

Orochimaru seemed prepared for this. He called an unfamiliar name, and soon Ren had a bowl in front of her.

As her stomach released its contents she was aware of Orochimaru's hand on her back. It was unfortunately comforting. He said something to the bowl-giving-person that she couldn't understand. The dirty bowl was taken, and she was given a clean one as a replacement.

She felt too sick in her heart to cry, too sick to breath. What if the Akatsuki killed people in the village before realizing she was gone? What if her team had been injured and it had been all of her fault?

Ren sat hunched over the bowl for a long time. Afraid that moving would throw her head spinning again.

"Would you like to lay down?" Orochimaru asked. His hand still on her back rubbing up and down as if they were close friends.

Ren told him "no" to spite him.

"... How long were you my cat?" She didn't look him in the eye. "Since I went to Kabuto's?"

His silence confirmed her suspicion.

Ren's mind filled with the experiences she had had with Ginko since he joined her household months prior. He had seen her cry, speak her mind, and… Ren thought of singing in the shower and the rebukes she'd received about exiting the bathroom with just a towel on. She wanted to vomit again.

"What did you drug me with?" She asked.

He waited a moment to reply to this question. "Nothing serious. Although it's not intended for the user to awake so... abruptly."

Someone came to the door and asked to speak with Orochimaru. He nodded and stood up removing his hand from her upper back. He turned to Ren one last time.

"Rest. When you awake, you and I have a lot to discuss."

He left the room.

Ren lied there and wished it all could end. That she could just end.


	11. Let Go

**Chapter 11 - Let Go**

Frou Frou

_Ume sat eating dinner with Emiko. Sakumo was out on a long mission and had asked Ume to stay with Emiko as it was nearly time for her to give birth._

" _...I just couldn't stop laughing when you asked 'who's next?" Emiko said in between bites of food. "You were so innocent about it. As if you hadn't realized you had won."_

_Ume laughed. "Well… I just expected that after training with Orochimaru it was going to be a little more difficult." She scratched the back of her head embarrassed._

" _Of course you did..." Emiko looked off into the warm evening sky and rubbed her very pregnant belly. The sounds of crickets and other outdoor creatures filled their ears._

" _How's the baby tonight?" Ume asked._

_Emiko looked down and her stomach and frowned a little. "He sure is active tonight. Feel this, he's kicking me hard."_

_Ume reached across the table and felt the small but adamant kicks in Emiko's stomach. "Woah. He'll be one powerful shinobi I'll bet." Ume said._

" _For sure he will be." Emiko replied. She smiled and looked down at her stomach. The baby kicked her again. "Itai! Goodness child… calm down."_

_Ume laughed._

" _Maybe you can sing a lullaby to him?" Ume suggested._

_Emiko gave her a scowl. "Ha. Ha. I could not sing to save my life. Why don't you try, Ume?"_

" _Okay." She thought about the lullaby her mother and other women in her village had sang when she was smaller. When she was sure she could recall all of the lyrics she leaned close to Emiko's stomach and gently sang the familiar tune._

_Hushabye, Hushabye_

_My good Baby, Sleep_

_Where did my boy's baby-sitter go?_

_Beyond that mountain, back to her home._

_As a souvenir from her home, what did you get?_

_A toy drum and a sho flute._

_Emiko rubbed her stomach and kept her eyes on the diming sunset. "I think your lullaby worked Ume, it seems the baby has fallen asleep."_

* * *

Ren woke with a smile on her face at the memory. She wondered if Kakashi remembered that tune. She would have to sing it for him when she saw him again… Her eyes opened up and realization sank in. She pushed the thought away. This was no time for lullabies.

Upon getting up, her head was clearer but her conscious was still murky. She ignored the latter part and hoped for a path home soon. Orochimaru knocked on the door sometime while she was eating a breakfast that had been delivered to her. She couldn't decide if she felt more like a hospital patient or a prisoner with the food tray on her lap.

"How are you feeling today?" He asked as he slipped through the door. He kept his distance from her and instead remained at the entrance. Something told Ren he was smart enough to know that a hand on her back today would result in a broken arm.

"Fine." She said curtly.

"Good, because I am afraid that you and I need to take a trip together. It seems your Akatsuki friends may be heading this way…"

"Hm... I'll give you one guess as to who would have told them that." She replied under her breath. _If she ever saw Kabuto again she would kill him._

He gave her a thoughtful look as he considered her words.

"So, no answers for me yet?" She changed the subject.

He smiled mysteriously. "Patience, Ren-chan. All will be revealed in due time."

They were gone from the hideout within the next hour. She was blindfolded for the first 30 minutes for security purposes and they began walking a trail to an unknown destination. They both wore straw hats and large capes to conceal their identities. Ren thought it eerie that they looked a lot like the company they were trying to avoid.

Traveling was mostly in silence. There would be a time to ask the questions, but Ren had not forgotten that he had impersonated her cat and invaded her privacy for so long. If he thought their "friendship" could just pick up where it left off, he was wrong.

They travelled towards the north mountains. Rather than sleep in the forest they would stop at inns or what Ren could only assume were run down motels. She initially wondered how the small hotels could stay in business since they were in such obscure places. However she soon noticed that the normal occupants paid _specifically_ for the remote location. Every customer that she saw looked ready to kill anything that came in their way, not to mention the unbecoming noises she heard at night from down the hallways…

Ren tried not to dwell on it. So much of this world had been filtered out when she read it. The depth of the real world was astounding and disturbing. She reckoned that if- when she made it back to her own world and reread the manga she wouldn't even recognize the characters on the pages.

During the nights they slept in the same room. They would arrive late and leave early. Ren would crawl into her futon, face away and sleep in the opposite corner of wherever he was. He would wake her in the mornings by putting a hand on her arm and then they would leave.

However, on the third night they retired for the day earlier than usual because a large storm had blown in. They were put in a room where the sliding door opened directly to an outdoor balcony. Ren sat at the edge of the room on her futon and organized her belongings in her bag. Orochimaru stood at the door of the balcony as he watched the rain.

She spoke before realizing what she was saying. "As Ginko, you said that one of your favorite memories was watching the rainfall. Did you mean it?"

He looked back at her with a smile. "I did."

Ren put her bag down and stood next to him on the balcony. "I've always enjoyed rain too. I grew up in a desert so rain was sort of magical to me."

He seemed pleased they were on speaking terms.

"When I first met Ume she would sit and watch the rain because she thought the sky was crying." Orochimaru said.

"She sounds like a tender hearted girl." Ren said.

"She was."

They stood in silence and listened to the wind howl.

_What happened to you?_ Ren wondered to herself. This man she was talking to was like the one from her visions, hopeful. When had he become a monster?

"Orochimaru, I don't forgive you for impersonating my nineko, and certainly not for the horrendous acts that you have committed over the years, but… Ume was quite fond of you, and you were good to her. So for her sake, I hope we can both find some answers."

If he was surprised by her boldness it didn't show.

She went up to her futon to retire for the evening. A few minutes later he had closed the door and gotten in his own bed.

When Ren woke up the next morning the room was chilly enough to see her own breath. Orochimaru was still asleep on the opposite side of the room. She looked over and saw that his back was facing her, his even breathing reminding her that even snakes sleep.

From the moment he woke, the day had a solemn feel to it. Although Orochimaru was often in control and very aware of their surroundings, today he seemed somewhat lost in his thoughts. After a small breakfast they gathered their belongings and began walking again.

"Orochimaru, where are you taking me?" Ren asked. They had been traveling too many days to just simply be heading to a hideout. They were getting higher in altitude and before noon they had come across snow.

"The place I'm bringing you to is where I first met Ume. Do you remember it?" He said as he continued walking.

Ren's mind flashed to the first memory, the strongest of them all. "Mm. Some of it."

"Do you remember… why her parents were killed?"

Ren stopped walking. "No." Her heart started to pick up pace.

Orochimaru continued. "Her father was a high ranking member of the Uchiha clan, and in those days there was much tension between the various clans in Konoha. He was engaged to someone within the family in order to keep the bloodline pure. But, he fell in love with a woman from a completely different village instead." Ren pictured the father from her memories. She could see him gazing at her mother lovingly. It wasn't an image she often associated with the Uchiha.

Orochimaru slowed his pace. "Ume's parents… they ran away together and came to live with her mother's clan. This is where she was born."

He gestured to the snowy surroundings. So this girl really was an Uchiha, Sasuke would be happy.

"They lived that way for ten years, switching back and forth from locations as often as necessary to protect one another and her, of course. Her mother's clan, the Kou, were rumored to have the ability to teleport to different locations in the blink of an eye. Therefore they were often called 'traveling gypsies'. Not exactly the ideal mate for Uchiha's pride and joy."

She was touched by how much her parents had sacrificed to be together.

"The Uchiha eventually tracked them down and took care of them."

Ren thought of Orochimaru's words as they continued to climb. Her heart was broken over the tragedy of Ume's parents. How very Romeo and Juliet their lives had been. _How could the Uchiha do that to one of their own... Is this one of the reasons why Itachi massacred the clan?_ If so, it made sense.

"Could her mother travel through time?" Ren inquired.

_Could that be how I am here?_

"No, that seemed to belong to Ume alone. Her time and location travelling abilities I suspect are a combination of what both her father and mother gave her."

Ren's heart was racing. The more he spoke the more it seemed inevitable that she and this Ume were the same person.

"Why are you telling me this now? Why wait?" She asked.

"Based on our prior conversations I'm not sure you would have accepted it earlier." She knew he was right. "Besides, some things are just better experienced." He stopped in his tracks. They had reached the edge of a frozen lake.

A very familiar frozen lake.

Ren was suddenly mesmerized; As if all the connections were on the tip of her tongue.

She walked in front of Orochimaru. She knew this place better than he did.

"I used to skate on this lake every winter." Ren said to herself. She could see in her mind's eye her mother patiently trying to teach the young girl. Ren saw another time, building a snowman on the lakeshore with a friend of hers…. What was her name… _Haruka_.

Ren was overwhelmed. She'd never had the memories just come to her in the daytime like this. She could really feel these, as though they had occurred yesterday.

"My house… it was just over this hill." Ren dropped her stuff in the snow and swiftly walked toward the hill.

She could see the small cottage in her head.

The smoke coming out of the rooftop.

Her mom making something delicious.

Dad asking for help with the firewood.

Grandma teaching her to knit.

Grandpa telling her about her clan's history.

"Orochimaru, it's just over here!" She yelled out excitedly. Ren couldn't contain what she was feeling.

_What was she feeling?_

Her amber-eyed friend remained solemn, but followed her up the hill slowly.

She broke into a run.

When she got to the top of the hill she was surprised. She saw nothing but clumps of snow on the other side.

Her heart sank. Ren already knew it. But now she _really_ felt it.

In her mind's eye she could see the buildings on fire.

Mother telling her to run to the shed.

Screaming.

Orochimaru stood behind her and spoke. "When the Uchiha came they destroyed everything. If we hadn't seen the smoke and made them paranoid of being discovered they would have destroyed you too."

"If my mother could teleport why didn't she?" Ren asked, tears budding from her eyes.

"She wouldn't leave her father."

Ren continued her quick pace down the other side of the hill. The shed was still standing.

Orochimaru didn't follow her.

Everything was flooding back from scraped knees in the summer to hot tea in the winter. Ren the saw the remains of the shed. It was a crumbling mess, but the door was still intact. Ren jostled the handle. She just wanted to get inside, see, feel anything that was left. The door came loose and she walked in. It had been over 30 years since she had stepped foot in here.

Her eyes jumped to the tools on the right. She picked up a hammer her dad had used many times to patch up their home. There was also a rope that had been eaten at, and the shed was mostly empty.

_Is that all that is left?_

Ren's heart throbbed. She couldn't control it. What should have been years old scar tissue was a fresh wound. She was feeling everything on the spectrum from low to high.

But as Ren turned around to leave the shed she wasn't prepared for what seized her next. The last time she had left this shed had been in Orochimaru's arms. His face was so vivid, his yellow eyes had been sunshine in that darkest night. Memories, sounds, songs, were rushing back to her.

Not only was Ren feeling everything _before_ her parents death, but now thoughts _after_ as well. She saw Jiraiya, Emiko, and Kakashi, flash through her mind in complete thoughts. It was as if all the pages of memories that had been floating in her mind for months were all being tied up and bound into some magnificent book.

She saw Ume's life as it really was, no, she felt _her life_ as it really was.

Ren dropped the hammer and raced outside. As she ran back to the hill Orochimaru remained standing there, watching over her.

"Orochimaru!" She called out to him. Tears were flowing down her face. It had been years since she'd seen him, been held by him. She couldn't get up the hill fast enough. Ren ran up to him. She was gasping for breath.

"It's… It's me. "

His eyes widened as Ren embraced him.

"I remember it all… Everything." She squeezed him tightly.

Orochimaru arms secured their place around her.

"Ume? " His shock was apparent.

Between sobs she cried. "It's me, Ume."


	12. Memories of the Past

**Chapter 12 - Memories Of The Past**

Tahiti 80

Ren lay in her futon; her eyes wide open.

She had been a wreck after her memories had come back. There were too many feelings at once. After her initial embrace with Orochimaru she had crumpled at his feet and assumed the fetal position. He remained calm, knelt down next to her and had put a hand on her back while she gathered her bearings.

There was an indescribable feeling of relief that came because she actually belonged in this world. She was Ume, this was her home, and in some ways it had begun to feel more like a home than the other world had. Ren still missed her parents and friends in the old world, but at least now she could make peace with being here.

A deep ache in her soul had also been filled to be reunited with Orochimaru. Like two magnets being pulled apart finally coming together.

She was also filled with inexpressible grief over the lost years. Twenty-four long years apart, a whole other life lived. And oh how her friend's life had changed. How much darkness had entered his heart. She wanted to hold, comfort, and save him with a ferocity she had never known prior.

Ren remembered everything from the largest accomplishments to embarrassing teenage blunders from both lives and it had felt impossible for her brain to hold it all in. She'd immediately got a migraine. After what felt like an eternity but was probably only 20 minutes or so Orochimaru gently asked if she would like to leave. She'd nodded yes and he once again carried her away from her hometown in his arms.

Only now, hours later, was her head finally clear enough to consider the implications of the day's events. Her eyes moved to look at Orochimaru laying on the opposite side of the hotel room. He was awake too. She gave him a faint smile so he knew she was okay. He smiled back at her.

Butterflies danced in her stomach. The Ume part of Ren was still full of teenage emotions and - to put it lightly - had a school girl crush on Orochimaru.

It made sense when he was in his early twenties, but he was over 50 years old now. Although as Ren scanned his face she saw he hadn't aged a bit. He really had accomplished his goal of eternal youth.

_But at what cost?_

She pushed the thought away. She didn't want to think about that right now. Ren reached out her arm in his direction. He put his arm out too and they held hands from across the room.

"I've missed you." She said.

And shortly after she fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning Ren awoke, her arm stretched out still. Orochimaru was not there. She sat up in her futon slowly; still dazed from the memories which were taking their place in the background once more. She stared out the window into the snow. The sun shone bright and all the snow seemed to be sparkling as it melted. A few minutes later Orochimaru returned bringing breakfast with him.

She didn't try to hide her smile. Along with the breakfast of Miso soup and rice were three strawberries on her plate.

"Where did you find those?" She asked as he put her tray on the kotatsu table nearby.

"I have my ways." He said and knelt down.

She wondered what he was thinking. Did he know it was her? That she was really here again? In some ways he was so different from the Orochan she knew and loved. He may look twenty, but he had aged inside and not so beautifully...

Ren put a strawberry in her mouth and chewed it slowly. She remembered the last time they ate strawberries together.

"Do you remember when Jiraiya made Tsunade that strawberry cake for her birthday and had us taste test it?" Ren said as she smiled to herself.

Orochimaru's mouth went up on one side.

"I thought he had poisoned us and I was going to die." She continued. "And then Tsunade ended up getting angry at him before she could eat it. All because he mentioned her aging. Poor Jiraiya."

"Truthfully, that was lucky for him. If Tsunade would have eaten it that would have been the end of Jiraiya for sure..." Orochimaru said in response.

"He never could catch a break, could he?" Ren finished.

He agreed with her. It felt like old times.

…

"Do you remember it all?" Orochimaru asked.

"Yes." Ren said confidently from across the table. It was Ume's confidence. She looked into his snake-like amber eyes. She wished she knew what he was thinking. "Except for… the end. I left this world September 21st, my birthday in the other world… But I don't really remember anything except Kakashi's birthday dinner."

Orochimaru waited until he finished chewing and paused for a moment to gather his thoughts.

"You and I were on the night patrol duty of the city border. There was a break-in that night, a few rogue ninja from the east. You happened to be wearing that necklace of your mother's because you had come straight from the birthday dinner."

With his words filling in the gaps Ren could picture the night. They had patrol duty several times throughout the years. In the war it had been quite important.

"What neither you nor I knew was that the necklace was quite key to your traveling ability. The rogues were unusually strong that night. Nothing that you couldn't have handled, but you used your sharingan that evening to defeat them and instead … disappeared mid battle. Right before my eyes."

He wasn't looking at her anymore. Ren vaguely remembered the ninja attacking. She could see that one last look towards Orochimaru and then blackness.

"How did I come back…?" She said out loud not really expecting an answer.

He looked back at her. "I was hoping you could tell me."

The conversation was sounding very similar to her first encounter with the Third Hokage. Ren strained her brain to think of her last night in the old world. "I was coming home from the library at my school... It was dark. I am pretty sure I was wearing a necklace too, one I had purchased on a trip abroad… but I swear it was the same as the one from the matsuri… " She grabbed her neck as if she would still feel it there.

Ren struggled. Maybe her brain was blurring the memories.

"It was a dark evening and… I was upset... Why?... But if it were the same necklace, shouldn't it have come over with me? I still have the clothes and book."

Orochimaru's stare deepened. "... It did."

"How,- how do you know?" she asked.

"It was not returned with your other belongings. The Third Hokage knew what it was." Orochimaru patted something on his chest. "I have it here." At first the gesture made it seem like the necklace was in his heart figuratively, but when he patted his chest and she heard the chain rustle she realized it was literal.

Ren felt a chill up her spine. "Can… I see it?"

He contemplated for a moment. "I will show you, but for reasons I imagine you understand I will ask you not to touch it."

"... Of course." she said nervously. She didn't blame him. It was so ironic that only now that she had a reason to stay did she find the way back to her old home... He pulled out a tissue and unfolded it, inside was a small blue tinted crystal on a small chain.

It was beautiful and simple.

He placed the tissue back inside his pocket.

"I want you to have it one day, but I would rather not lose you again." he said.

The words were genuine. They pulled at her heart. He now seemed convinced that she was his Ume.

"Can you train me to use it?" She asked. "I would still like to let my parents know in my old world that I am okay. After that… I don't really know."

"In good time, my dear." He said as he stroked her cheek.

She wanted to believe his words.


	13. Poor Unfortunate Souls

**Chapter 13 - Poor Unfortunate Souls**

Pat Carroll

"Knock, knock." Ren said. She was leaning against a doorway into the laboratory. Orochimaru was alone studying something underneath a microscope

After Ume's memories returned they had travelled to a new hideout. Since then she found herself unsure of how she should approach Orochimaru. She was of course initially so happy to have her memories back and be reunited with him. However once everything had calmed down, despite her efforts- she couldn't shake her moral obligation to reject the terrible acts Orochimaru had committed during her absence. How was it possible to love someone and yet be so disenchanted with them at the same time?

She didn't know what she expected to happen. Orcochimaru had begun to train her to be able to use her mother's necklace and for now she just tried to focus on that.

But... Because she was a part of this world too she couldn't just shut out Orochimaru's actions and believe that the "end justifies the means" any longer. He had committed abhorrent acts that could not be ignored, no matter how much she wanted to.

"What are you working on?" She asked curiously, trying to brush these thoughts from her mind.

"Hm? I'm studying the regeneration abilities of this salamander." Orochimaru referenced the cage near him where an axolotl swam about contentedly. "I'm trying to identify what would be responsible for that ability…"

Ren stood near him. "What genes in particular are you targeting?"

He looked at her. "I'm not sure yet."

He moved over to allow her to look into the microscope.

"Are you florescently marking any proteins?" She asked. "Perhaps GFP would be useful if you are wanting to identify specifics…"

He smiled mischievously at her. "You'll have to educate me on that."

Ren realized that despite his surprisingly advanced lab equipment that they came from very different discovery backgrounds. She felt the familiar excitement she had when she was an undergrad tutoring students in genetics.

"Actually… I might just be able to… Excuse me for a moment."

She went back to her room and grabbed the textbook that Orochimaru had packed for her along with her other original belongings on their journey here. As she lifted the heavy book she wondered if this is why he had bothered bringing it along.

"It's your lucky day Orochan, I just so happened to come back to this world with a Biochemistry book in hand."

She opened the heavy book to the index to search for GFP. "Aw, found it." She placed it on the table next to him.

Ren flipped to the correct page. There was a picture of the jellyfish where the protein originated from. "And look at that, it was even a Japanese scientist who discovered it..." She said to herself.

Ren continued summarizing the words on the page. "GFP is a protein marker that glows under fluorescent light. It's what makes this jellyfish glow. Attach the GFP plasmid to your target gene, place your sample under some fluorescent light and it glows if your target gene is being expressed. Simple as that." She smiled.

She looked from him to the textbook. He was eyeing it curiously.

"Can you read English?" she asked.

"Mm." He nodded. She wondered how. "Where did you learn all of this Ume?" He asked.

"School. Before I came back here I was actually in my first semester of my PhD." She realized she was speaking gibberish for him and corrected her sentence. "I was in training to be a geneticist."

She looked around the room. "And believe it or not, for my research I studied _regeneration_ in the eyes of zebrafish."

She could tell he was impressed and intrigued. The smile on his face and the look in his eyes made that obvious. The Ume in her couldn't help but want to please him, but in the back of her mind Ren knew it wasn't wise to speak so much concerning this topic to someone with such loose ethics. Her eyes wandered to a used scalpel in a tray behind Orochimaru, and she wondered how many people had been the victim to that...

She cleared her throat. "Although... the genes in that world and the genes in this one are unfortunately quite different. So I'm afraid I would hardly be of any help… Humans here have a much larger variety of phenotypes, and I don't think mendelian genetics are followed as strictly from what I've seen..."

His pupils fluctuated as he noticed her mood change. She looked around. "Anyway, thanks for letting me see this though. It's nice to be back in a laboratory again." Ren smiled and reached her hand for her textbook.

"You don't need to be nervous." He said acknowledging the elephant in the room. His face was serious.

Ren blushed. The words which had been weighing on her mind came out. "I'm not nervous for me..." Her eyes moved back to the scalpel. "But I know I'm not the only child you took under your wing. And perhaps the others weren't as... fortunate."

Orochimaru's head turned around to look at the scalpel too. His smile returned. He moved his head back to look at Ren. "Is it really so unethical to care for children whom no one else wanted in this world?" He asked.

"I don't think experimenting on them is considered caring…" She said passive aggressively, upset that he was smiling about this topic.

She didn't want to continue this conversation as she figured it would only contribute to the space between them which she desperately wanted to avoid. But Orochimaru had other plans.

"I beg to differ. Those experiments helped them reach their potential. Do you think their villages treated them better? Sending them into war, sacrificing them needlessly?"

The comparison seemed unfair. "People go to war for the sake of _everyone_ in their villages' safety. Torturing children for your own agenda is not comparable." She said bolder than she anticipated.

Orochimaru took a moment and was calm in his reply. "Do not be so naive to think that _wars_ are for the benefit of anyone. You know better than that." There was a sternness in his voice she rarely heard. Ren regretted her choice of words and looked down to avoid his gaze, thinking of his dead parents.

"I can see you are still not convinced and I can hardly blame you, my dear. The history books of the Leaf can't really be expected to give a fair account of my doings can it? Let me help. Did I benefit from the experiments? Yes. But so did those individuals. There are several in these very hallways you could ask." He motioned their surroundings. "And since we are discussing my moral rectitude, If you want to point fingers about using others to satisfy their own agenda you needn't look beyond the very council that trapped you in Konoha and would have readily fed you to the Akatsuki only weeks ago."

Ren was silent. She didn't know what to say about that. He continued.

"We waste our lives fighting in pointless battles all for the sake of _the village_. The same villages that ignore and shame the orphan children I take under my care."

He walked close to her, put his hand under her chin and lifted it up. "And even if some of them did suffer, I gave those children a noble purpose which is more than their villages could ever say. How is that unethical?"

"And what was your noble purpose?" She asked. "Living forever only benefits you."

"Ume," He said, his voice laden with disappointment. "My purpose was to find _you_. I didn't know how many years that would take."

She removed her chin from his hand. "Don't- don't place the blame of your actions on me, Orochimaru." Ren said as she felt the weight of all the children after her on her shoulders. She pointed to the scalpel and took a half step back from him. "My life is not more important than those other children. I would never want that."

"To me it is. I don't regret my choices." He said solemnly.

There wasn't any good response to that.

Orochimaru walked closer to her again and put his hands gently on her upper arms to comfort her.

"Of course, I don't _blame_ you for anything. All I am saying is that if that same village you are so devoted to actually made an effort to find you, perhaps I wouldn't have been left to my own devices."

She didn't know what to think anymore... Had Orochimaru been justified in his actions?

He smiled kindly again, stood up straight and tucked her hair behind her ears. His fingers lingering on her cheeks.

"Do you trust me?" He asked.

"Of course I trust you… it's just-"

"Then trust me when I say that it's all been for you. It always has been."

She felt ashamed for doubting him.

"I never thought of it that way before..." She spoke.

"I expected as much after you were in their care for so long. We all have actions that could be deemed questionable according to the leaf. I'm sure even at this moment they are determining how to frame your exit from the village as treason too..."

Ren feared he was right. Especially since the Akatsuki attacking during her escape with Orochimaru would only confirm their initial fears regarding her. Her heart hurt for her friends and the Third Hokage. She hoped they would be able to see through the facade.


	14. Quit

**Chapter 14 - Quit**

Cashmere cat, Ariana Grande

"Have you finished the scroll yet?" Orochimaru asked from across the room. It was late into the night and he and Ren had been studying the ancient historical accounts of the Kou people for hours. He had been looking at records on his desk, while she had taken the couch across the room instead.

He heard no response to his question and smiled at the sound of her even deep breathing instead.

_You never did enjoy ancient history, did you?…_

Orochimaru closed the book he was reading and stood up to put it back into its place on the shelf. He blew out the candle on his desk and walked over to Ren asleep on the couch. She was laying on her side. The candle on the side table was nearly burned to the end of the wick. After removing the scroll from underneath her arm, he unfolded a blanket that was draped on the top of the couch and placed it on Ren. He sat at the end of the couch and tucked the blanket in around her feet.

He sat there for a while and stared at her face as it flickered in the waning candlelight.

Ren rolled around to lay on her back and her eyes fluttered open then closed again. "Thanks Orochan…" She mumbled, pulling the blanket up closer around her neck as if the thin piece of cloth could protect her.

He couldn't help but think of how vulnerable she looked with her stomach up towards him and how much he liked it.

His right hand moved, lightly caressing her calf.

Orochimaru had observed several things while concealing his identity as the ninneko those months ago. Many of Ren's actions had served to suggest her identity of Ume at the time. Once her memories returned he'd hoped in vain that his Ume would come home to him once more, but regrettably she still seemed oft buried beneath her current persona, Ren... There was an internal battle going on inside that woman and it seemed as of recently that Ume was losing.

Her eyes drifted open once more, following the fingers tracing lightly on her calf and smiled dreamily at him. "Will you lay next to me?" she asked innocently.

These moments he relished. The dawns and dusks of sleep where her guard was down and she was willingly at the complete mercy of him. He could do anything to her if he wanted. Did she realize how much power he had? How fragile she was? It was during these moments where she was his Ume again. If only they could last, but like every dawn the sun would eventually rise and with it so would her reservations.

Ren's eyes shuddered closed again before he could answer her question, and she drifted back to sleep.

He thought back to one specific interaction he observed as Ginko. Ren had been cleaning her house when Kakashi had come to return an item she had forgotten during practice.

...

"Hm? Did someone ring the doorbell?" Ren asked, looking at Ginko.

"Yes, it's your sensei." he replied.

Ren brushed her hair with her hands quickly and paused her music player. She looked as though she regretted her choice of grey sweats and a t-shirt for cleaning, but proceeded anyway to let Kakashi in.

Ren opened the door and greeted him. "Hello Kakashi, fancy seeing you today."

"Hey Ren," Kakashi spoke, giving her a friendly salute, "You forgot your scarf at training yesterday so I thought I'd return it."

"Oh thank you." Ren replied, taking the scarf in her hands. "Sorry, I was in such a hurry yesterday I completely forgot about it…"

"Yeah, I figured as much." Kakashi replied. His eye scanned the surrounding environment. "Deep cleaning today?" he asked.

Ren looked over her shoulder for a moment. "Yes. Well... just finished. Actually I was about to start lunch. Would you like some?"

"No thanks, I really should head out."

"Oh come on, I insist."

He paused at the doorstep for a moment then yielded. "Lunch does sound nice…"

Ren smiled. "Come on in."

She made lunch while the two of them chatted about trivial things that did not matter to Orochimaru and therefore were not worth remembering. But what had really intrigued him was the conversation that had occured as they were finishing their meal.

"... Is this what you were playing music on when I came to your front door?" Kakashi asked while washing the dishes of the meal.

Ren nodded.

"It looks very high quality." He added.

"So I've heard. Kabuto said there is nothing like it here." Ren replied, drying a plate with a towel.

"Kabuto? You still seeing him?" Kakashi asked.

Ren gave him a dirty look. "I was never _seeing_ him. We went on one date."

"Aw, too bad. I was rooting for you two..." He said with a smile in his eyes.

Ren gave him a dirty look and bumped him with her shoulder. Kakashi picked up another dish to wash.

"So… Do you want to hear some of my music?" Ren asked.

"Sure." He replied.

Ren wiped her hands and took the phone, pushing start on the playlist she had paused from before. An upbeat song started playing loudly. She turned down the volume some before continuing her chore.

They stayed that way for a little while. Washing dishes, listening to background music in silence.

"Your music kind surprises me Ren…" Kakashi said.

"Oh?" She looked at him.

"This song seems… rather suggestive."

"Suggestive?" She half laughed. "You don't even know what they are saying."

"I don't need to understand the language to know what this song is about…" Kakashi said. "The woman's voice says enough as is."

"Alright, alright so you aren't a fan of Britney Spears that's okay. She is, as you say, 'suggestive'." She reached over and skipped the song. The next song proceeded to have a similar feel.

"You really listen to this kind of stuff?" he teased, smiling.

"Hey, you better watch it. Look, I have my music, you have your smutty book. We all have needs to satisfy… and no one to take care of them." Ren teased back.

Kakashi looked slightly taken aback. "Makeout Paradise is a _romance_ novel. Very different from what you are listening to."

Ren laughed out loud at the offense he took.

"Alright, alright. I'll concede that your _romance_ novel is on a higher level than my music. Fine." She said grinning. "But you don't understand how difficult it is to be a twenty-four-year-old trapped in a seventeen-year-old's body. Do you have any idea what kind of hormones I've had to endure? I can't date anyone my age without looking like some gold digger, and I can't possibly date someone who "looks" my age because then I feel like a cradle robber."

She emphasised by pointing a very soapy hand in Kakashi's direction. He was smiling and held his hands up to avoid being splashed on.

"So don't be surprised that I enjoy listening to good 'ol Britney while mopping my kitchen floor." Ren finished with her hands on her hips.

Ginko's tail flicked in a sharp pattern.

It wasn't something that she meant to say, but Ren was too absorbed in Kakashi to remember that she was being watched. The conversation told Orochimaru two things. First, that with a twenty four year lapse this girl was most certainly his Ume and that secondly she was no longer a child, she was a woman. A woman with _needs_.

It was then that he determined he would need to first get Kakashi out of the picture as Ren's nascent crush on Kakashi could prove lethal to his plan. A little visit to Kakashi's boyhood interest, Hanare had made forestalling that simple enough...

...

Ren's eyes moved beneath her lids indicating the onset of dreams.

She was a fascinating challenge. It was no secret that she adored Orochimaru. Even as she forced herself to look away and at times spoke back aggressively to him, the emotion was still there and was perhaps the one unifying factor of her two lives. It was... _endearing,_ he thought.

His finger made its way higher on her leg, daring to touch her hip, then circled its way back below the knee.

Orochimaru was not short of admirers nowadays, however Ume had been the first and he intended to keep her admiration.

He stood up slowly so as to not disturb her and prepared to leave. She rolled again back on to her side, facing the edge of the couch. He tucked the unruly hairs that were always falling on her face behind her ears.

Ren's eyes opened lazily once again, her pupils were so dilated they were nearly fully black as she repeated her earlier plea in a near whisper.

"Lay next to me?"

He bent over and kissed her forehead knowing full well that's not what she wanted. He knew how important it was to give just enough to wet her mouth, but never quite enough to quench her thirst. He had been doing this for many years after all.

"Goodnight Ume." He said as he stood up. He blew out the last candle in the room and exited the study.


	15. Rivers and Roads

**Chapter 15 - Rivers and Roads**

The Head and the Heart

" _Are you sure you'll be okay?" Emiko asked with concern. A young Kakashi was balanced on Ume's hip; Emiko licked her thumb and rubbed her son's exposed pink cheek to remove some leftover breakfast._

" _Of course. It's only a few hours anyway." Ume looked down at the young boy and grinned. He looked up and returned the smile._

_A small smile tilted up from Emiko's lips. "You're right… I'm just overthinking things." She looked at her son once more, brushed the bangs out of his eyes and kissed his forehead. "It's just hard to leave him…" She said out loud unbeknownst to herself. Emiko smiled at Ume and turned around to join her husband at their front gate._

" _Have fun you two!" Emiko yelled when she reached the gate._

" _We will!" Ume and Kakashi said in unison. They waved to Emiko and Sakumo._

_As the couple faded from sight Ume turned to Kakashi and asked "Alright, what first?"_

_The young chubby cheeked boy turned to Ume and said with a serious look. "Ninja and Samurai."_

" _Ninja and Samurai? Alright, which one do you want to be, let me guess, Ninja?"_

_The boy nodded quickly. A small smile spread across his face. Ume walked back to the inside of the Hatake house._

" _You always make me be the Samurai…" Ume mumbled. "Alrighty we have to set up the fort first. You know the drill." She put the boy down. He ran over to a cupboard and proceeded to empty it of pillows then set up a makeshift house. Ume walked over and reached for the cupboard above him, took the pillows out of it and handed them to the child._

" _Thanks." he said. He took them and added them to the fort. Once he was finished he nodded at Ume._

_Ume stepped back, put one hand on her hip and pointed a playfully stern finger at the young boy. "Now get out of here you Ninja. This is Samurai territory!" She declared. The young boy grinned and ran out of the room to hide. Ume closed her eyes and began to count to ten._

" _One…. Two…." The game was an advanced version of hide and seek. The samurai had to protect the fort while also looking for the ninja. If the ninja destroyed the fort before the samurai could find the ninja, the ninja won. If the samurai found the ninja first, then the samurai won._

_The problem was that Kakashi was actually quite good at the game. No surprise there, he would make a fine ninja one day. In the beginning Ume had let him win a round or two but now she actually had to try to protect the fort. Their score was currently tied and Ume had no intention of letting that little kid win._

" _... 9 ….. 10." Ume opened her eyes and began her search. "Come out, come out wherever you are…" She slipped through each room, listening for footsteps. She made sure to keep checking her fort, but that Kakashi was a good hider._

_There was only one room she hadn't checked. Ume walked back to the far guest bedroom, sure Kakashi was hiding there. She heard a rustle from the bedroom._

_Oh Kakashi you are a goner now… she thought._

_A small pile of blankets rustled in the room._

" _Tsk, tsk… Come on you can do better than that.." She threw off the blanket only to find a wooden log underneath._

" _Eh?!" She gasped._

_Ume ran back to the fort room. Kakashi was standing on top of the broken fort with a smug look on his face._

" _Eh?! Did you do a substitution jutsu?" She asked._

_The child nodded, obviously satisfied with his performance. Ume was impressed, what three year old could do that?_

" _You little cheater!" She grinned and ran over to the child and tickled his stomach as punishment. He laughed. "You know no jutsu is allowed. As punishment you are the Samurai!" They both laughed._

* * *

Ren missed her friends in Konoha. But after several months she grew to feel that life without Orochimaru would be unbearable. He was different now, for sure, but she was certain that deep down he was still her Orochan and that his intentions were good. He had wanted to live forever, master all jutsu so that he could find her and bring her back, was that really so bad? And now that she was here she was certain that time would heal the old wounds and that he would soften once again.

"You must be faster than that." Orochimaru told her. It was a warm day and they had gone outside to complete her training for the day.

"Yessir." Her brow furrowed and she repeated the move with the speed that was required.

"Good. Now do it ten more times. I have some business to attend to, but I will see you for tomorrow's dinner."

"I'll get it done." She affirmed.

He nodded to her and went back inside the hideout. Ren let out a long breath; bothered that she hadn't done enough to impress.

* * *

Ren trained with Orochimaru almost daily. They started early and often went until late at night unless Orochimaru was otherwise occupied. It was more intense than she had anticipated. Even Orochimaru left most sessions exhausted although Ren had her suspicions as to why he tired so quickly...

He had early on expressed his disappointment at her current level. Even with the memories of trainings past restored, she just had not been pushed to this level in such a long time. He was understanding of her circumstances, but also unbending. He expected her to rise to his level of expectation. But Ren didn't mind too much; she loved the challenge.

She became more comfortable with her Sharingan. What her and Sasuke had done in the past had just been the blind leading the blind.

Occasionally Orochimaru would leave for a couple of days, but it was never long. During those trips Ren would have the time to occupy herself however she pleased. She would often talk with the cook, who was an old woman hired from the local village for them, and hear the stories about her grandchildren.

When the cook was busy and other ninja were not available to talk to, Ren's mind went back to her old life. Did her parents in the modern world think she died? Certainly if her presence was missed here they must still be wondering about her there… It disturbed her to think that her parents were somewhere mourning her death on Earth when she was living another life. She didn't know if she wanted to stay there, but wished to go back and "settle her affairs".

She didn't have to wait too long before she got her opportunity.

* * *

"Are you feeling okay?" Ren asked Orochimaru one morning. They had agreed to train together at seven that morning and he had never shown. Ren instead found him still in bed and brought him breakfast as an alternative.

"Mm." He sipped his soup. "Never better, sleeping in does that." He smiled with his eyes as the soup went down hoping to convince her.

"I thought you were a better liar." she said plainly. He paused mid drink to consider her words.

"Well, you must know me too well to be fooled."

"Mm…" She paused. Looking away. This was a conversation she had been dreading from the beginning. "I know... that your body is rejecting you."

His pupils constricted, a sign that he was surprised that she was aware of such things.

"I understand that part of our deal- taking me over Sasuke means eventually taking this body too." She looked up at him with wet eyes. "If you can just wait until I can tell my family in the old world that I am okay- then I will we willing to be the next -"

His cup hit the tray hard, spilling.

"Absolutely not." It was the firmest she had ever heard him be with her. It shocked her.

"Ume, listen to me-" His tone was soft again, pleading almost. He took both of his hands, laid them on her cheeks and tenderly pulled her close. "I did not wait nearly twenty-five years to reunite with you just to merely _dispose_ of you." He said in a near whisper. "Remember my love, there are other volunteers, and I would much rather keep you by my side. Hm?" He cocked his head.

The closeness was dizzying, but in a good way. It made her question whether he was the sick one or not. If only she could just stay this close to him forever. She considered the importance of the conversation topic. Ren put her hands over his and pulled them away from her face and onto his bed instead.

"I love the sound of that- truly, but I suppose... my conscious still has trouble sitting with it." This was a very difficult conversation for Ren. Not for lack of confidence in the matter, but Orochimaru was literally the center of her world. She didn't want to lose him or disagree again.

"It's just…" Her hands shook with nervousness. Since they remained placed on top of his hands, now on the bedside, she hoped in vain that he wouldn't be able to tell. Why was stating her opinion so difficult now? "I know you explained your reasoning before, and it makes sense, but I just don't want to see anymore die for that cause…"

She finally looked him in the eye, nervous of the reprimand she might receive. Ren was surprised to see that he was smiling. He moved his hands to her back and pulled her from her chair so close that she was nearly sitting on him.

"Okay." he said.

"...Okay?" she probed.

"If that causes you so much stress, as it clearly does," he looked down for a moment and took her shaky hands in one of his, "then we'll find another way. Using your textbook has made other options far more obtainable."

"Really?" She asked quietly.

"Of course, my dear."

Ren couldn't stop the relief that spread over her face. This one problem had been the root of so much trepidation. And within a moment it was so easily solved, and by a first semester biochem textbook nonetheless. It was better than she had imagined. He really was changing. Maybe… maybe she could look over his past actions now, maybe they could move on.

She had come into the conversation expecting to give up her own life rather than face her guilt anymore and it had been entirely abolished.

His hand found her cheek and pulled her close again. This time she placed her hand on top of his and laced her fingers in between. The intimate gesture did not go unnoticed. Her heart raced as she leaned closer, eyes locked, their faces nearly touching.

A knock at the door was heard.

Orochimaru broke his gaze and looked to face the noise.

"Sir, news concerning Kimimaro has arrived." A voice spoke through the door. Orochimaru's brow furrowed ever so slightly. He stood up slowly from the bed and walked to the door to receive the message.

Ren moved back to her seat and improved her posture. Now that she was out of the trance she was blushing at the thought she had and dismissed it promptly.

Ren looked at her hands while the messenger and Orochimaru talked. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but knowing the name Kimimaro meant it likely wasn't good news. She recalled that his health was suffering from what she remembered from the manga. At one point he was supposed to be the host for Orochimaru… she couldn't remember who Orochimaru had chosen instead. _It didn't matter now,_ she thought reassuringly.

The door closed and Orochimaru walked back to his bed although he did not sit this time.

"I'm afraid I will have to cancel our training session today. I have urgent matters elsewhere that I must attend to." He said.

Ren stood. "Of course. That's no problem." She offered a nod and began to exit. Before she could get too far he grabbed one of her hands and gave it a gentle squeeze. She turned around to face him.

"When we have more time, I hope we can continue our conversation."

She smiled at him. Perhaps she hadn't imagined the whole thing after all.

"Mm." She nodded. "I would like that very much."

He returned the smile. Once she had exited the room she gently touched her cheek where his hand had lingered and smiled.

* * *

The following Fall the atmosphere of the hideout changed. They didn't have much time for chatting or much training as it turned out. Orochimaru was absent more and when he was there he wasn't himself. He was definitely getting sicker and time was of the essence. The only time they did see each other was to work on the procedure to lengthen his body's life span.

One good day when they had nearly finished her outdoor training, Orochimaru's eyebrows furrowed and Ren knew something was wrong.

"Ume, get inside."

She didn't get the opportunity before she saw something out of the corner of her eye come towards her. Ren jumped to dodge it and nearly had her nose grazed by the weapon.

Ren looked towards the target with horror to see the all too familiar face of Sasori of the Sand. She had of course never met him in real life but she knew. He was accompanied by a man she did not know, but was terrifying nonetheless with a long scar diagonally across his bald head. She figured the bald guy must have been chosen instead of Deidara when her information leaked.

Sasori and Orochimaru exchanged some heated greetings. Sasori commented on the absence of Orochimaru's usual smile due to the fact that he actually had something to lose, then turned his attention to Ren.

"You know I used to hear stories about you as a kid. You were rumored to be a prodigy… a child of two worlds. I never thought it would be so true." Sasori said.

He paused to look her over.

"You would make a lovely work of art…"

It was said for Orochimaru's sake and Orochimaru did not take it lightly.

"But that mouth of yours will have to be sewn closed, you've already sai-" Orochimaru didn't let him finish and demonstrated so with some aggressive snakes in Sasori's direction. The fight broke out between the four of them. Mystery man was obviously assigned to capture or kill Ren. He had terrifying skill with kunai and swords.

She cursed herself for being so exhausted from her workout. She was fast, but so was this guy. As she backflipped behind she caught a glimpse of two more people.

_Oh no._

Her living nightmares Hidan and Kakuzu were waiting their turn. Hidan gave her an eerie wave and a smile as she flew through the air.

She and Orochimaru were going to die.

Before Ren could catch her breath she was struck in the back of her calf. It wouldn't be long now. Orochimaru was fairing well, but he couldn't see who was lurking in the shadows. They needed to escape. It was the only option.

Ren ignored the pain and quickly jumped to where Orochimaru was. They stood back to back and fired parallel jutsu as Kakuzu and Hidan walked out of the trees.

Kakuzu reminded the Akatsuki members not to mutilate the bodies as they were worth a lot of money. The other members didn't seem concerned with his advice.

There was only one option.

Ren reached into Orochimaru's pocket while he was distracted and grabbed the necklace. As soon as she touched it she knew there was something special about it.

"No!" Orochimaru yelled.

She blinked and showed her Sharingan. She grabbed his hand and -

Darkness.


	16. Coming Home Pt 2

**Chapter 16** \- **Coming Home Part II**

Skylar Grey

* * *

When Ren opened her eyes she couldn't see anything. She blinked several times and worried she had done something wrong. She squeezed Orochimaru's hand.

"Are… you okay?" She asked him.

"Yes…" He was alive, but he didn't sound too confident in his response. Relief flooded through her. Her eyes began to adjust and she realized that she could hear noise outside of wherever they were.

_Could it be?_

An engine grumbled and people's mutterings were heard.

"Ume, where are we?" Orochimaru asked. How strange it was for him to be the one in the dark, mentally speaking that is. She let go of his hand and felt around her surroundings. She found what she was looking for. A door. Ren pushed it open and soft light began to fall through. They were in a closet.

When she first exited, she was confused. This was her grandmother's house's layout but the decorations were all different.

As she continued to walk around quietly she found a familiar dent in the wall she made as a kid.

This was her grandmother's house.

_They must have moved…_

Ren was in shock. She couldn't believe it worked. She had traveled back to her old world. She looked back to Orochimaru who was exiting the closet cautiously.

… And she had brought Orochimaru with her. She leaned on the dresser in the room for balance.

"We did it. We really did it…" she said incredulously, then smiled widely at Orochimaru.

He seemed less excited by the venture and more concerned.

She walked over to him and cupped the sides of his face, grinning widely.

"I'm home."

* * *

They exited the house soon after, but not after swiping some street clothes for the road and bandaging Ren's leg and other minor wounds. Fortunately for them the owners were not home, and were not elderly with their clothing styles.

Ren wouldn't have cared though; she just needed to get to her parent's house. She wouldn't risk "teleporting" them, in case her parents had moved too, or she got it wrong and trapped them somewhere else forever. Orochimaru being in an unfamiliar world, realized she would not be persuaded to take them back early and followed behind, quietly observing with keen interest the things of this new world.

Ren was surprised at how well they blended in, considering that men with long black hair and strange pupils didn't frequent her grandmother's old neighborhood. But a pair of sunglasses and a nice ponytail had helped.

* * *

Ren spoke excitedly to herself, unaware of the unfamiliar words she was speaking. "Okay, there should be a bus station up here that will take us to an airport. From there, we can probably catch a greyhound to Phoenix… Maybe even get there by tomorrow morning."

Orochimau didn't ask. He was a smart man, and he knew that he could learn more by observing than by questioning the animated girl whose attention was elsewhere. His energy would have to be used to keep up his stamina, which was waning steadily.

They followed her route, Ren speaking to the man at the front of the "bus" in that forbidden language, English. It was so strange to hear that supposedly unused and ancient tongue thrown about so casually. He had discovered the language in old scrolls when he was searching for Ume all those years ago, now he realized why...

Ren shamelessly used genjutsu to avoid paying any money, and the interactions made Orochimaru smile. It was funny how people were so quick to forsake their normal morals when they really wanted something. Not that he was judging, he was the same after all.

At the "station", they switched transportation vehicles to a larger contraption with seats that had fabric on them and smelled of sweat and some other chemicals. There were loud people boarding as well, laughing, and using devices similar to Ren's music player to take quick pictures and communicate with each other apparently. As he and Kabuto had suspected, Ren had not revealed all of the features of her music player.

"Hey can you take a picture of me?" One girl asked her friend.

"Sure." The friend replied.

In some ways the people looked very similar to anyone else, but tended to range from heavy set to slender more frequently than the people in his world. The abruptness of their personalities was fascinating. The conversations he heard and actions he observed provided insight into some of the fidgeting quirks that Ren had as well. She wasn't the only one who bounced their legs or ripped their nails when nervous it seemed.

"Oh my gosh, did you see what Jacob posted?" Another person spoke loudly showing a picture on their music player of a man and woman at the beach in very tight and revealing swimwear.

"What an idiot…" Their seat mate said and bumped his friend in front of him to get him to view the picture.

Ren spoke to Orochimaru in their native tongue. "I guess this is a crash course on American society for you. Sorry if it is a bit much…"

He smiled. "It certainly is… What a strange world you lived in."

She smiled. "Oh you don't even know. I should take you to LA or Texas, then you would really be shocked."

Neither slept on the long overnight bus ride, but for different reasons. As Orochimaru gained insight into this world, Ren could feel the end destination of her strenuous journey coming and all the nerves that came with that.

Ren took hold of his hand tightly for most of the trip. Whether it was a consequence of being around her touchy feely people again or her anxiety, he wasn't sure.

* * *

As they neared the city of her youth in the morning Ren's eyes remained glued to the window. Her anxiety heightened. She was afraid to hope. What was she hoping for exactly? She didn't know… After they exited the greyhound bus, they stopped briefly at a convenience store inside the station to grab the bus tickets and food.

"Okay, why don't you grab some food while we are here. I'm going to arrange our tickets." Ren said.

"This is food? Do they have any eggs?"

Ren smiled to herself. "Maybe, but this is an American convenience store so don't set your expectations too high. Maybe try something like a bag of cheetos instead."

Orochimaru inspected all the food labels with intense interest. Why were the ingredients in this food some of the same ingredients he used in his laboratory, he wondered to himself. He took his sunglasses off to read a label more closely when some kids in the same aisle caught a look at him. They whispered to themselves until one was brave enough to approach him.

"Um.. Excuse me mister."

"Hm?" Orochimaru replied, surprised to be addressed so openly.

"Are those your real eyes?" One boy with red hair and freckles asked.

Orochimaru smiled. "Yes, of course."

"Wow!" The other kid said loudly. "Mister you look just like that guy from Boruto!"

"Do I now?" Orochimaru replied, very curious. He bent down to be at eye level with the children. "What is this _Boruto_?"

The redhead kid started rummaging in his bag for something to show him. Ren overheard this dangerous conversation as she was grabbing her own food. She didn't know what Boruto was herself, but the name was familiar enough to concern her.

"You seriously look exactly like Mitsuki's parent..."

Ren moved to stand in between the children and Orochimaru, facing him.

"We need to head out." She said in Japanese, interrupting the conversation with the kids. She purchased their food for them, and went straight to their last boarding area reminding him to keep his glasses on.

They had less than an hour ride to a stop only one block away from her house, and she couldn't take it much more. They boarded the bus and Orochimaru watched as Ren sat at the edge of her seat ripping her nails.

"Ume," Orochimaru spoke. Ren looked over to him and put her hands down. "Why did you choose your grandmother's house to go to?"

"I guess it was just the first safe place I could think of in this world that wouldn't have people in it." She replied and rubbed her aching fingers.

Orochimaru held out his hand to take hers in. She offered a fake smile and put her hand in his. He inspected the nail beds.

"You've been ripping your nails again? They look painful."

"Oh yeah…" She pulled her hand back and embarrassedly looked at the red nail beds. "Old habits die hard, I guess."

"Hm."

* * *

The house looked exactly like how she remembered it. The stucco front, cactus garden and her mother's seasonal wreath at the door.

Orochimaru looked in her direction as if to ask her what she was planning on doing now.

Without properly thinking it through she walked up to the front porch and knocked. Orochimaru stayed on the sidewalk. Ren heard a rustle on the other side of the door and then as sweet as honey, she heard her mother's voice call, "Coming."

Before she had the chance to react, the door opened. Her mom smiled at her initially and then looked shocked.

"...Karen?"

This was it.

Her mother had been missing her for three years now.

Her daughter had come back to life.

"Mom?" Ren leaned in and hugged her mother tightly, but not for as long as she wanted to. Her mom pulled her out of the embrace.

"You look terrible! Have you slept at all since I last saw you?" Mom said as she rubbed her thumb underneath one of Ren's eyes. "Come in dear, you look like you've just seen a ghost." She muttered things about how thin Ren looked.

Ren was shocked. Her mother was so casual, as if- she hadn't missed her at all.

"Who's your friend?" Mom motioned to Orochimaru as she shuffled Ren indoors.

"Um... A friend from college." Ren said, trying to come up with an excuse. Mom gave a nice wave to Orochimaru and called out, "You'll catch your death outside, come on in."

He smiled at the comment and proceeded to walk forward. Before Ren could process what was happening her mother continued to speak.

"Where's Peter and Theo, Love?" Mom had moved to the kitchen and was starting something in the kitchen.

_Peter?_

"How do you like your tea?" Mom asked Orochimaru while she waited for Ren's answer. Ren was grateful for the moment to think.

"Just plain, thank you." He answered softly as he shut the front door behind him. In true Orochimaru fashion he was adapting easily to the American warmth of her mother. Much better than Ren was fairing.

"They're… They're home." Ren stumbled to make an excuse. Was mom talking about her old college friend Peter?

"Peter has the day off?" Mom asked.

"Yes..." Ren said. She was so confused. What was happening. Why was her mom acting this way… As mom prepared the tea, Ren caught a glimpse of the photos on shelf in the adjacent hallway. There was one of an older version of her, her friend Peter, and… a cute blue-eyed _baby_ in between the two of them.

Ren's stomach dropped, and her body threatened to pass out.

Was that _her_ baby?

"You know I wasn't expecting you until Friday... Are Peter and baby Theo coming up then?"

_So many questions…_

"Yes, um, Peter works tomorrow so he's waiting until Friday to come." Ren finally answered.

"Awww…" Mom said as she poured the tea. "So then what brings you two here?"

"I'm here early to help my friend… _Kevin_ , move into his new apartment." Ren said. Orochimaru glanced her way as he sipped his tea.

"Well, any excuse to see you more often is good enough for me." Mom smiled and squeezed her arm. "But goodness you've changed so much since last month. Don't work yourself too hard. Are you sure you are eating enough?"

Ren mumbled some nearly incoherent answer about a new diet she was on.

She was losing it. What was happening. Why was she here? Who was she…...

Orochimaru picked up on it and decided to distract her mother.

"This tea is wonderful, may I ask what kind it is?"

"Oh you are too kind…"

Mom began to chat with Orochimaru in the kitchen. Ren moved to the hallway with pictures on the shelf like a wandering ghost. She couldn't stop staring at the picture of… Peter and _her_ child.

Ren was shocked… What sick dream was she a part of? _Karen_ had just gone on living in this world, while she was eternally trapped in some children's comic book?! All those sleepless nights wondering about the fate of her parents and they had just been blissfully continuing on!

Her fists clenched and her head ached.

Ren's mind began to spiral to a dark place. She knew she should have been relieved her parents had been spared the grief, but her heart couldn't help but feel physical pain over the unfairness of her pitiful life.

She removed the photo from the frame with trembling hands and folded it into her pocket.

"… that is very generous of you, but we must be going." Orochimaru spoke.

"Well, if you must." Mom looked over at Ren as she reentered the kitchen and smiled. Then her face straightened. "You worry me you know. You've got to take better care of yourself. Having a new baby is no excuse."

"I know…" Ren said. Mother walked over to where Ren was and fussed with her shirt.

"Ever since your father…" Her mom said with tears in her eyes as she straightened Ren's collar. "Well you know. I worry."

The final piece of memories clicked in Ren's brain. She remembered her last moments in this world. She was walking home from the library, book in hand when she received a phone call from her mother that her father had just passed away from a heart attack suddenly in the hospital. In that moment of grief her Sharingan had been awakened in this world and moments later she had arrived back at the Naruto world with no memory of the experience.

She gave Ren another hug. "I love you dear."

Ren forced herself to breathe. Her heart hurt so much it made her body physically ache.

"I love you too, Mom." Ren said with tears in her eyes. It would be the last time she would ever utter those words to her mother.

Mom pulled back and wiped her eyes. "Oh don't cry dear, those postpartum hormones are making me tear up too. Remember, I'll see you Friday?"

Ren forced a smile and whispered back. "I'll see you Friday."

* * *

"So… you saw your mother…" Kakashi said. His face was strained as he looked off in the distance. He had the picture of Karen, Peter and Theo in his hands and looked as shocked as she had felt that day. "You… you went back? How did you get back… to this world?"

Ren looked at him through the steam rising from her cup of tea. She took a sip. They were sitting at his apartment. Ren on the couch, Kakashi sat at the kitchen table.

"The same way. It was intuitive once I had tried it. Just picture in your mind's eye the place you want to be and "poof"." Ren said solemnly. She finished her tea and sat on the couch looking down. "I don't think Orochimaru would have risked it in his condition except that we were stuck in the wrong world. And I - I just had to leave. It wasn't my home anymore."

The words still stung a little, but the pain had mostly faded.

"Isn't it strange that when I first heard about my father's death the safe place I wanted to go was here?" Ren gave a sad half laugh at the thought. "It's not safe at all…"

She looked up and made eye contact with Kakashi.

"You don't need to look so concerned." Ren added "I've found peace with it. I mean, I do belong here, even if I was born almost 4o years ago. And my mom back there is taken care of so… what more could I have asked for?" She offered a weak smile as she picked lint off her sweater.

Kakashi's face reflected a kind of empathy that only one with similar experiences could have. He put the photo down. They both knew there were no words to express that feeling.

"... How did you get back to Konoha?" He asked.

"... Orochimaru… He let me go."


	17. Love the way you Lie

**Chapter 17 - Love the way you Lie**

Skylar Grey

Ren and Orochimaru returned to one of the other hideouts, the first one she'd ever been too. She blinked tearfully as the world she had thought was her own blurred before her sight and then became blackness.

As soon they arrived, the shock of the new information reached a breaking point, and the weight of the whole experience seemed to hit. She wished she'd been blessed with memory loss this time around.

Ren excused herself to her old room. As she walked away, she heard Orochimaru speaking, but it went in one ear and out the other. She climbed into the bed fully clothed and stayed there. She didn't eat. There was no desire to. Someone knocked once, but she ignored them.

No one could comfort her.

After two or three days Ren left the room to feed her starving brain. She didn't know what time it was, she didn't care. Orochimaru joined her in the kitchen shortly after. Something told her he had been waiting for her.

He sat next to her and sipped tea while she ate some rice and vegetables the cook had made earlier in the day.

"Ume… Your pain is truly heartbreaking."

Ren sipped from her water cup.

Orochimaru continued, "Is there anything I can do… to alleviate it?"

She didn't know what he was offering, but she didn't want any of it. "No." She replied flatly.

Orochimaru's pupils narrowed. He stayed silent and stared ahead while drinking his tea. In normal circumstances Ren would feel bad for her comments, but these were no normal circumstances. After several moments Ren looked over at his handsome profile and noticed he was looking healthier. There was some color to his face again, not much, but more than there was before. He also seemed taller, much taller than he'd been in years…

Ren's stomach clenched as she suspected the reason why. When they made eye contact she looked away. She was too messed up and angry to be fooled by his adoration and glamour today.

She focused her eyes back to her food again, stirring her vegetables with one chopstick.

"So… Whose body did you take?" Ren asked quietly next to him. While her tone did not express direct anger she knew he would sense her disdain.

He replied after some time,"No one you know." He took one last sip of his drink, walked away and left her alone.

So very alone.

Ren stayed at the table and let the tears flow silently down her face. Her whole body tensed. She was so angry at Orochimaru. How could he do that to her?! They had been making progress with the genetic techniques. How could he?!

As the tears continuously wet her cheeks the only sound that filled the dark room was the dripping from the faucet.

_Drip._

_Drip._

Ren's anger shifted uncomfortably as the time passed slowly and the anxiety of offending Orochimaru seeped into her thoughts.

_Drip._

She was in so much pain and was just stupid enough to deny the company of the one person who wanted to comfort her.

_Drip._

She hated him and loved him and didn't know what to feel. She gripped her hair with both hands as her cry became more audible. Everything was so unfair. She wished she could take it back and let him hold her and kiss her and do anything to her so she could forget the old world and this world too.

Orochimaru left her alone until Ren approached him a week later. She wished desperately he would have come to talk to her, but she figured she wasn't deserving of any favors after her aggressive encounter with him.

By the end of that week Ren was not as angry, but due to the silent walls of her bedroom and the demons who haunted her nightmares at night she was desperately anxious to be on good terms again with the one person who cared about her.

She had no one else after all.

"Can I come in?" Ren asked cautiously at the door of Orochimaru's office. It was evening time, and the candle at his desk burned bright indicating his presence.

"Please do," she heard. Orochimaru was sitting at his desk reading some scrolls. She did a brief nod, walked in and closed the door behind her. Once she entered he looked up and smiled. It wasn't a necessarily a pleasant smile, Ren thought to herself. She felt the heat rise to her cheeks at thoughts she had had earlier in the week and looked away.

"I was wondering if we could begin training again." Ren said, her hands folded in front of her.

Orochimaru sat there, his eyes fixed on her, searching for motive. After a moment he answered. "Of course."

"Thank you." She replied. Ren waited a moment, but felt unusually awkward like she was talking with a stranger instead of a friend. She decided to exit, unsure of what to say next.

Just as she was at the door again, Orochimaru asked her to wait. He stood up and walked over to her. Her eyes were glued to his like the prey she was. When they were less than a foot apart he lifted his hand and tucked her hair behind her ear.

The physical touch was comforting.

"Ume, you know that all I do- it's so that we can have a better world, right? My motive has never changed. And no struggle was ever won without some loss..." Ren looked away, still disapproving of his new body in her heart. He took his hand gently to her chin and lifted her face up so that she would look him in the eyes again. "Someone gave their body to me to accomplish things that they could not. It's not really so bad is it?"

Orochimaru's words were soothing and she wanted to believe his intentions were good… "I didn't have much choice after the injuries I sustained from our Akatsuki encounter. Don't you think?" His hand traveled to the front of her neck and he clasped it around the crystal. His eyes looked down.

"May I take this back?"

Ren didn't know what he was talking about, the necklace or her, but in that moment she would have given him both.

"Yes." She said quietly, still staring into his eyes. His height made her feel protected again. She just wanted to feel not broken, and he was her only hope.

Both of his hands moved to the back of her neck and unlatched the necklace carefully. He then clasped it around his own neck and tucked the crystal into his robe. His hand found her cheek again.

"That's my good girl."

Ren's heart was pounding. She didn't know what she was feeling, but at least it wasn't pain. She could be happy again, the world could be happy. As long as they stayed together life would be worth it.

* * *

In a few short weeks life had returned to what had become the new normal. Ren and Orochimaru trained together usually twice a week. Orochimaru was gone more often now. It was harder than before. She needed him more than before.

Ren didn't ask where he went. Truthfully she didn't want to know. All she knew was that when he was with her the world felt okay, and when he wasn't there, it didn't.

When Ren looked back she figured life could have stayed that way for sometime if not for that one dreadful day.

It was a Tuesday.

The cook, Mai Yamamoto in this hideout, had a young child whose birthday was near.

She purchased a cheaper fish of questionable quality to spare some change for a present.

Ren ate the fish for dinner.

Ren woke up at 3:04 AM to vomit the remains of the questionable fish.

Rather than turn right and use the girls bathroom she was assigned- she turned left because the boys bathroom was much closer.

Deep in the night someone else had also gotten up to use the same bathroom at 3:03 AM.

As Ren threw open the door, the shock made her vomit on the floor right in front of the both of them.

_Sasuke._


	18. Hide and Seek

**Chapter 18 - Hide and Seek**

Imogen Heap

"What are you... doing here?" Ren asked as she wiped the vomit from her mouth.

"I could ask you the very same question." Sasuke said, his face expressionless.

Sasuke stepped to the side of her to exit the bathroom, as if this conversation wasn't worth his time.

"I'm here so that you don't have to be." Ren said as anger rose within her.

"Don't flatter yourself with that lie… You're here the same reason I am here." He spoke, his back to her so she couldn't see his face. He put his hand on the door and gave a half laugh to himself. "I guess you really are an Uchiha."

Sasuke walked out. The words pierced Ren to the core. _How could he say something like that?_

Her worst fears had come to pass. Hadn't everything she'd done as Ren was to prevent this moment? To make sure that at least Team seven would be preserved?

The words felt hollow as she considered her circumstances.

She vomited again. Although this time was not from illness.

* * *

"Ume chan, this is just a misunderstanding… Hear me out and I promise you will feel much better about all of this. " Orochimaru said delicately. He closed the door to his office and walked closer to Ren. Ren, Sasuke and Orochimaru had had a brief tense gathering outside of the bathroom, but after some heated words were exchanged, Orochimaru decided that it was better to explain himself alone to Ren.

Ren faced the wall and stared blankly at the reflective surface of a framed picture of a map. She could see Orochimaru approach her from behind. He put his hands on her back and attempted what she could only assume was an innocent smile. His endeavor to placate her was not welcome. "You understand, don't you?" He said as his hands moved from her hair to the sides of both of her arms.

She didn't know how to face betrayal.

Ren spoke, a fire in her burning. "Don't you remember the chunin exams. I offered to take the place of Sasuke. You don't get both." she said angrily as she turned around with a furrowed brow on her face. Their noses were almost touching.

His smile faded some. "Of course I remember… and I kept my word. I had nothing to do with his coming, he found me."

"What a cheap answer." she scoffed and looked away. He put one arm against the wall behind her, and used his other hand to gently move her chin forward again.

"Ume…" he said calmly. She looked into his mesmerizing amber eyes.

"So what, are you gonna take his body too? The same way you took this one!" She back handed his chest to emphasize her point.

"I never take anything… People give me their bodies so that I can make use of them in making a better world. We talked about this. It's a sacrifice that they all understand and do willingly. And Sasuke is no exception."

She hated the way he was rationalizing everything. "You are exploiting them! If your purpose was so honorable, why did you keep it a secret from me?" Tears were forming in her eyes wanting to escape.

He looked down. "I was trying to spare your innocence." He paused as if trying to find the words to say. "But you are no child, and I apologize for forgetting that."

"Then just take my body." She pleaded, crying. Ren activated her sharingan. "If it matters so much to you, then use me. But don't just discard your promise like it didn't mean anything!"

His eyes opened wide, offended. The smile was gone.

He spoke slowly. "Stop saying things like that, I will _never_ do that to you."

There it old Orochimaru had come through for just a moment. It had been so long since she had seen him…

She turned her head to the side as the angry tears fell down her cheek. As one hit the ground his head turned again and searched for her gaze. He stood straight again and removed his arm from the wall.

Orochimaru grabbed a cloth from inside a pocket in his robe and began to wipe her eyes. She let him. But the action made her cry more.

"Oh love…" he abandoned the cloth and wrapped her in his arms. She did not return the embrace, but did not reject it either.

He held her and she cried in his arms though she were a child once again.

After awhile and in an almost whispered tone over her shoulder he spoke her name and then paused for a long time. "With Sasuke's body you and I can continue the Uchiha clan line." He stroked her hair. Her stomach dropped. "We'll be safe. I'll take care of you andour _children._ Think of the world they will live in..."

Ren's heart started beating faster. It was everything she had always wanted and never even dared allow herself to consider. Orochimaru's hand settled on the small of her back and drew her in closer. Her mind thought of a daydream, a home on a hill, a family with him… It was oh so tantalizing. She imagined Orochimaru walking up the grass with a little blue-eyed boy on his shoulders as the wind blew gently behind them.

Ren wanted that daydream- but something felt... wrong. No matter how she looked at it, the picture didn't fit. She tried to imagine the face of that child, but couldn't make it out clearly.

…

…

She knew in her heart that that quiet life would never exist between the two of them.

He was not the man that would live in the cottage and she was not the woman who would wait patiently for him everyday. The truth was they both had changed, and perhaps what once could've been was far far too late.

Ren pulled out of the embrace slowly. She could see now that the offer on the table that she had always desired was not something real - and that even if it was it couldn't make both of them happy. For the first time in a long time she could see clearly the patterns of manipulation from the beginning. He was different, and while she may have once been treasured now she was only another tool to further his goals. She gave him one last look of disappointment and walked out the room without looking back.

* * *

"I didn't leave then. I was still a prisoner kept against my own will." Ren said looking down at her tea cup which had long been empty. "The brief conversations we had afterwards were always tense or argumentative. But it was dreadful to not be able to talk with him. I had lost my whole other world, and I felt like by losing him I was losing this world too. And his offer was tempting, Hell, it was everything I ever wanted. The promise of being together forever." Budding tears stung Ren's eyes as she broached the tender subject. "There were several moments I wanted to run back to his arms and tell him that I didn't care, and that anything was worth the 'price of love'. I almost did."

Ren laughed dryly as a tear slipped down her cheek and she wiped it away. "Do you wanna know what saved me?"

Kakashi nodded.

"That little boy, Theo. I thought about being a mother to that cute child, and telling him about his father. But when I thought about the future children of Orochimaru and I couldn't be _proud_ …" She grabbed the picture of Karen, Peter and Theo from the coffee table and stroked the edges. "I couldn't picture myself saying: He's a good man. Be like him when you grow up. The future I saw was vague and full of heartbreak, sorrow and misery. And I figured, a kid like Theo deserved better. And so I stood my ground. My conscience had been smothered for a long time and wouldn't be anymore."

Kakashi's eyes spoke volumes and he placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'm proud of you. And those future children will have more than just their father to be proud of."

Ren smiled quietly.

She wiped her nose on a tissue and continued her story. "And so that was the way things continued for several weeks until the last day."

"I came into the kitchen in the middle of the night to grab food and noticed that there was still a candle burning in his study down the hall. After not hearing any movement, I entered to blow it out, and noticed he was still there in a seat slouched over asleep. It was so strange to see him so… normal."

* * *

Ren remembered walking into the study to dowse the candle. Orochimaru looked so peaceful, so familiar, like the young man she used to know. She was overcome with nostalgia. Ren walked over to where he was, grabbed for the candle and was interrupted.

"You can leave it, I'll head to bed soon enough." Orochimaru switched positions and straightened his back.

Ren placed the candle back on the desk. "You look like you haven't slept in days."

"... I haven't."

Ren didn't know what to say. She was tired and didn't want to fight tonight. Finally she spoke. "It reminds me of around the time Kakashi was born; you were gone a lot, and when you were back you didn't sleep either."

"Yes, those were rough times. I hadn't yet numbed myself fully to the atrocities of the leaf village." He rubbed his face and looked at Ren thoughtfully.

They stared at each other silently for a moment.

"But… even then we had some good times too, right?" Orochimaru asked.

Ren smiled at him. "The best of times." Orochimaru returned the smile. "It was around that time that you had that Yamano lady admirer, do you remember?" Ren said, wanting to continue the moment.

Orochimaru's smile spread. "No, enlighten me?"

"Well, let me tell you I _remember_ it." Ren stated as she pulled up a chair next to him and sat down. "She was some young blonde thing in her early twenties and I took great pleasure in how you so bluntly ignored her obvious advances."

He laughed to himself. "Oh, yes I forgot how jealous you were of her..."

Ren's played with her hands and laughed at the thought. "That is so embarrassing to hear… How did you put up so well with my obvious crush on you?"

He smiled but made no answer.

Ren smiled to herself. Their life could have been so good. "I wish our life could have stayed that way."

After awhile he said, "Me too."

… The heavy silence filled the room once again as the thoughts of memories faded; reality suffocating whatever pleasant feelings were present.

"Orochimaru, I can't stay here anymore. I don't want to spend the rest of my life resenting you." She reached over and squeezed his hand.

…

"I know." He squeezed back. No longer smiling.

…

Ren stood up and walked to the door. She turned back teary eyed to her first love and spoke softly, "I'll always love you."

Orochimaru's face remained unmoved, the candlelight painting it's rays on his stoic face as he looked at the ground.

Ren's heart broke, but she felt peace in her life for the first time, and closed the sliding door behind her…

Never to return.


	19. In My Head

**Chapter 19 - In My Head**

By Ariana Grande

"Hey Kakashi, wait up." Iruka yelled in the busy square and shot a wave to his friend. It was near the end of a warm day and the sun was setting all around them.

Kakashi was with a woman who looked familiar… They turned around to face him.

"Hm?" Iruka said in surprise. He stopped in his tracks when he realized the woman was his old student Ren. She had changed so much he didn't recognize her anymore. She was older of course- but also looked more tired _._ Her eyes were dark underneath, and she was thinner. However despite her decrease in health she had really blossomed into a beautiful woman.

Iruka walked slowly to greet them.

"Ren? I heard you were back... It's good to see you." He said genuinely, but also with a twinge of awkwardness, not quite sure how one was supposed to greet someone who was kidnapped for the last 2 years and had returned.

The woman put a smile on her face. "It's nice to see you too." She could sense his awkwardness. Ren was his student, why was it so hard to talk to her?

 _It's because she's a woman now…_ He pushed the unseemly thought away.

A mom"I'll let you two chat, I actually have somewhere to be. Iruka sensei, we'll have to catch up later." She reached over and squeezed his hand and then waved to the two of them goodbye. _She was never so touchy before._

Kakashi's gaze stayed on Ren until she was out of sight.

"She's different now…" Iruka accidentally said out loud.

"Mm…"

"Is she alright Kakashi?"

"… No." He sighed, "she's not."

Iruka could sense the bitterness in his friend's voice. He had both directly and through the grapevine heard of Kakashi's endless efforts to lead rescue missions for Ren in the last two years, all but a few of which were denied again and again by the new Hokage, Tsunade. She had initially remained firm in her position on the grounds that Konoha couldn't protect Ren from the Akatsuki. Then after the Akatsuki lost a number of its members (thanks primarily to team seven), Tsunade had bluntly stated that "Ume's" loyalty would always be to Orochimaru first and that there was no point in leading a rescue mission for a traitor.

It was a known sore subject that Iruka was not confident in delving into.

As it turned out, Ren had found her own way home a few weeks ago without any rescuing necessary. But at a high cost it looked…

From what he had heard she had merely showed up at the gates and had asked to be let in. The guards weren't sure how to treat her, but ultimately brought her to the Fifth Hokage for judgment.

Tsunade and other members of the council were skeptical of Ren being sent as a spy for Orochimaru, but after using Inoichi to search her mind, ultimately had no evidence to place her anywhere except back where she was from.

"... Where is she off to?" Iruka asked, hoping to steer the conversation into something more positive.

"Jiraya's." Kakashi answered.

"Oh? I wasn't aware that they knew each other..."

"They knew each other from _before_."

Iruka was actually aware, as most people were, that Ren and Jiraiya were in fact quite close. Her past as Ume was now common knowledge thanks to the Akatsuki attack two years back. Supposedly Ren had seen Jiraiya on the street a few days after her return to the village, and after the initial shock had walked into his arms and had just wept for a long time. Jiraiya had held her close and said, "I know. I know ..."

It had shocked the neighbors who were watching and the news had been gossiped about.

"How can I help, Kakashi?" Iruka said, breaking the silence.

"I don't know." He said dejectedly.

"Mm..." Iruka nodded in response.

* * *

"Would you like a mikan with your tea?" Jiraiya asked Ren. They were at his apartment. It wasn't the cleanest place per se, but it was comfortable. There were a lot of fluffy blankets, pillows, and an expensive kotatsu. It was obvious Jiraiya often brought his lovers home.

"Sure, thanks."

"How are you adjusting recently?" He asked.

"As best as you could expect…" Ren paused to open her mikan. "Tsunade is still suspicious of course. I don't blame her. She's smart to be."

"Why do you think that?"

"You know why... My loyalty is divided."

"...Hm." He sat down across from her on the other side of the kotatsu. "I wouldn't be so hard on yourself. My loyalty would be divided in that situation too. It's not a bad thing, it makes us human."

* * *

"I'm sorry, I just can't get it right..." Ren said. Her brow furrowed.

"Must be hard for you to have to struggle to pick up a jutsu. They seemed to come pretty easily to you when I was your teacher." Kakashi joked.

"Yeah, well maybe it seemed that way to you…" She forced a laugh, and brushed off the bottom of her pants which were covered in dirt. "Before, I could rely on Naruto to need it explained at least three times… He was good at covering my tracks."

Kakashi looked at the setting sun. "Ja no worries. We'll pick it up later. It's not something meant to be mastered in one afternoon anyhow…" His eyes turned back to Ren. Her brow remained furrowed and her jaw clenched. The telltale sign of her frustration.

"Yeah, I guess." she replied after a moment. But she wouldn't look him in the eyes.

This was part of the _new_ Ren _,_ Kakashi had discovered. She was more insecure, and undeniably a perfectionist... She had told him it was a consequence of having her memories restored, but Kakashi knew it had less to do with that and more to do with living with that _bastard_ for such a long time. He wouldn't say it though. It wasn't his place.

"Come on, I'll take you out for dinner. There's a new Shabu Shabu place I"ve been wanting to try…" She looked up at him. He knew Ren couldn't resist her favorite food.

* * *

Anko sat there and swallowed her drink in one gulp.

"Ahhhh… Another please!" She sighed pleasantly.

"Sure thing."

As the bartender brought her another drink Anko caught a glance at a familiar face walk in. It was Kakashi, and she might have said "hi" except that a girl was with him...

Anko's fingers tensed around her cup.

_Ume._

Anko had met her briefly at the chunin exams, but she hadn't been a memorable face then. Just another in the crowd, if she had known then… Anko stared as the couple was seated in a booth to her far right. Even as Ume sat down with her perfect posture she had an air about her that Anko resented. She looked away so they wouldn't notice.

It wasn't Ume's fault of course, she had to remind herself. But for years Anko had been compared to her. Although since Ume was not a person at the time, but a legend there had been no chance she ever could have lived up to her. It was strange to see this woman and see her as human… She found her eyes staring back at the couple again. Ume said something, and Kakashi laughed. Did Ume know how much her existence had influenced Anko? She reckoned not.

What had made her so special she wondered…

* * *

"So… you seeing anyone?" Ren asked once they'd sat at the restaurant.

"No." Kakashi replied as he flipped the page of his menu, feigning disinterest. He didn't want to discuss what happened with Hanare. He had realized only too late Orochimaru's involvement with his personal life. Hanare had quickly fled the village once her "work was done", confessing with tears that she was threatened and had no choice... He didn't want to hear it. Kakashi had not forgiven himself for what happened, nor was he planning on doing so. "... You?"

"Of course not." Ren gave a half laugh. "Half the village thinks I'm a traitor, and the other half treats me like a poor victim…" She added bitterly, then seemed to regret it. "Although, the stray dogs I've been feeding outside my house do seem to fancy me _quite_ a bit." She looked up and made eye contact with him, a smile teasing at the edge of her mouth.

 _You do have a thing for dogs..._ He thought to himself but had the decency to not say audibly.

"Oh well, you'll have to introduce me sometime if things get serious." Kakashi said.

"I'll let you know." Ren said.

The waiter came by to take their order.

"I'll have an Umeshu to start me out if that's alright." Ren said from across the table closing her menu. She eyed Kakashi with a playful smile that showcased her dimples, daring him to object to the alcohol. He didn't take the bait. He was just happy to see her smile. If it took a couple of drinks to keep her loosened up, so be it.

"Just tea for me." He replied.

* * *

The next morning Kakashi sat on a rooftop and ate his breakfast. While the day was foggy he could see Ren in the distance practicing the jutsu that he had taught her the day prior. They weren't scheduled to meet up for another three hours, but it seemed like she just couldn't keep away from practicing it… He reflected on last night's dinner. Things seemed to have gone smoothly, it was almost like old times until Ren caught a glimpse of Anko leaving the restaurant. After that her mood had darkened and she had decided to go home straight after dinner.

He popped the last bit of food into his mouth and pulled up his mask. Time for the day to begin.

Three and a half hours later or so… (he wasn't great at time), he met her for practice.

Ren's forehead was sweaty, and the bags under her eyes confirmed his suspicions of her long night training.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. Been here long?" He asked.

"No, not at all." Ren replied.

"Alright, show me what you got." He said.

Ren nodded as she closed her eyes and made the necessary hand signs. As she moved into the final pose to release the jutsu's power the nearby tree's branch moved towards them like a hand waving. In theory it was supposed to be the trunk. All-in-all the feat was quite impressive considering they had started working on this jutsu only 24 hours prior, and that wood was not the element Ren was naturally inclined to.

She let out a deep sigh.

"Nice job, I'm impressed with the progress." Kakashi offered.

"Don't lie…" Ren said under her breath, louder than he thought she realized.

"Hey don't worry about." Kakashi said cheerfully.

"I won't once I have mastered it."

"It is not something one can master in an afternoon." Kakashi said, less cheerful this time. Ren repositioned herself to try again.

"Ren, stop."

She continued the signs.

"Hey." He walked over to her and placed his hand on hers before she could finish the hand signs. "Hm? Why the stress over this?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"Well then help me understand," He said.

She looked up to his face, her eyes dewy.

"It's just…" She looked down ashamed. "I don't want to disappoint you..." She said.

"Disappoint me? Ren it doesn't matter to me…"

He put his hands on her shoulders. Tears were brimming at her eyelids now, wishing to escape. He felt the urge to comfort her. Not sure what to do, Kakashi tentatively put his arms around her and patted her back awkwardly as she cried, wishing he could do more.


	20. Recover

**Chapter 20 - Recover**

Natasha Bedingfield

Ren broke into a sprint through the dark alleyway and tackled the man in front of her. He slid on the ice as she pinned him to the ground.

"I said, where is Tateishi?"

He remained silent.

"Hm?" She knelt deeper on his back to convince him.

"Okay, okay! I don't know! Ouch! They don't tell runners like me. I'm being honest. Please."

She remained in her position. Kakashi walked up to where they were.

"Please!" He continued to beg.

"Then who do I need to talk to?"

"I dunno I dunno! OW! Tsukada, TSUKADA. By the Spicy Fish. That's where I meet him when he needs me to pick up."

"What's he look like?"

"STOP. He's got an eye cover like your boyfriend, hard to miss!" He said through clenched teeth.

Ren loosened her grip. The man gave a sigh of relief."But you -you didn't hear it from me." He struggled as he got up to run away, limping some." Kakashi and Ren made no attempt to follow him.

"I hope you like spicy food." Kakashi said as Ren stood up and brushed the snow off her clothes.

"Sounds good to me." Ren replied.

This was their first mission together since her return to the village. They were targeting a drug dealer in the snowy city of Yube that might have connections to the Akatsuki. Tsunade thought Ren's knowledge might prove useful. It was only a B ranking investigation mission, but it was nice to have some trust.

Yube was rotting from the inside out. While the city displayed glamour and beauty from the outside, its economy was thriving on drugs and prostetution at its core. It was a city only for the wealthy, and the poor suffered greatly.

Ren and Kakashi were posing as a couple there for their honeymoon vacation. They were just about to check into their hotel when they had spied that little drug dealer.

They ate at the well-named Spicy Fish and lingered that night. No man with an eye patch or otherwise came by during their meal.

"You think we spooked him?" Ren inquired.

"Nah. It's just too early..." Kakashi played with the tea cup. "Let's take a walk." Kakashi nodded towards the park across from the restaurant.

They left and crossed the street into the snowy park. It was beautiful scenery, but it left Ren melancholy. Snow reminded her of her parents and Orochimaru. They crossed a bridge that had a stunning frozen lake below it.

Ren stopped and leaned on the bridge looking over the frozen lake. A few couples were skating below. One of the boys slipped and his partner giggled. Their youthful innocence seemed rare in this city.

Kakashi waited at the edge of the bridge. His scarf had come undone and he rewrapped it around his neck. Ren looked at him and attempted to hide a smile, then faced the lake again.

"Hm?" Kakashi cocked his head; confused at her amused expression.

"Do you remember when you first started wearing a mask Kakashi?" Ren's eyes followed the couples below.

"As long as I can remember. Mysterious, isn't it?" he added nonchalantly.

Ren's grin spread. "... Do you remember who told you _that_?" Her eyes remained fixed on the lake.

Kakashi looked confused.

"When you were around three years old, I showed up after working a night shift to talk to your mother." Ren looked away from the lake and at Kakashi. "Because it had been a cold night, I wore a black mask and scarf around my face to keep warm during the shift. You were so little, and when I showed up at your house in the morning you didn't recognize who I was." Ren laughed and walked over to where Kakashi was standing.

"After teasing you about my identity for a bit, I walked over and wrapped my own black scarf around your face like this -" She stood close and repositioned Kakashi's red scarf so it covered his mouth. "- took the mask off and said to you _'mysterious, isn't it_?' Apparently you were quite impressed, because your mother never stopped blaming me for your mask wearing obsession thereafter."

Kakashi stood there a little stunned, though whether that was due to the comment or the distance between them was undecided.

Ren continued to stifle a laugh. " Oh Kakashi, and I used to think you were so mysterious when you were my teacher…" She tied the red scarf into a fashionable knot. "Truthfully you are appropriately called the _copycat_. Of a thirteen-year-old girl of all things..."

"... Is that… true?" His cheeks were red. It wasn't often he was caught off guard.

"Indeed it is." She laughed and walked back to the center of the bridge. Her eyes scanned the restaurant. "Hey, I think our _friend_ is there." A man was smoking at the entrance. She couldn't tell from the distance but she guessed he was wearing an eye patch too. She activated her Sharingan momentarily to confirm her suspicions.

Her smile faded. "Let's go. We can visit memory lane later."

* * *

Ren and Kakashi waited for the eye-patch-wearing Tsukada to leave before they began following him. It didn't take too long. He talked to one person, finished his cigarette and sauntered off down the main street.

They followed him from a far distance; although it didn't seem to matter much. Tsukada was neither discrete nor concerned with drawing attention to himself. He never once turned to check on followers and occasionally cat-called a few women on his route to wherever. He seemed confident in his position of power.

It wasn't too long before he finally entered a building that seemed to be filled to the brim with boisterous people. Ren noticed the bouncer out front.

She wrapped her arm through Kakashi's and giggled as they approached the bar. Ren gave a coy wink to the bouncer and went in first, still holding Kakashi's hand. As he attempted to enter the vicinity, a large arm slammed across the doorway.

"Ladies only." The bouncer said. He was a thick man that seemed to chew every spoken word. Kakashi's eyes scanned the crowd which obviously contained more than just women.

"He's my date." Ren said as she tucked her hair behind her ear, keeping a hold of Kakashi with the other hand.

"It's him or me sweetheart." The bouncer turned to Kakashi and gave an evil grin all the while chewing slowly.

Ren put a finger to her temple and puckered her lips to act like she was severely debating the option.

"I'll see you later Shou…" She let go of Kakashi's fingers, blew him a kiss and entered into the abyss of people. She knew he would remain closeby.

She thought Tsukada would be sitting with some women, but it seemed he had business to deal with first. He was talking to an intimidating man in the back, finishing what she could only assume to be a drug deal. She was amazed at his lack of wariness and was grateful she hadn't shown up to this world here. She took the spare moment to pull her shirt past her shoulders, exposing them, and hike it up in the middle to reveal her midriff.

Once the deal was complete Tsukada purchased a drink and looked for a seat. His eye patch made him look like a pirate. Ren gave him a little wave and patted the leather seat next to hers. He grinned and took the seat while placing one arm around her and the other around a blonde on the other side of him. The blonde girl had been previously talking to another man, but her attention had switched completely when she saw who had down next to her. Tsukada must of had a good paying reputation around here.

It took a lot of mental stamina to cozy up to someone whom she revolted. Tsukada mentioned briefly that 'he had never seen her there before' but mostly fixated on the blonde to his right. The blonde girl obviously knew how to flatter these kinds of men and Ren took mental notes as the night progressed. She made sure to feed his ego, and keep his glass full as he talked.

She thought she would have to wait for him to get really drunk before steering the conversation towards his "line of work" but it seemed as though it were his favorite topic.

"... he didn't last long of course- an idiot like him." Tsukada scoffed and took a long drink. "The boss wasn't going to allow that." The blonde girl laughed and twisted her hair in a curl.

"Do you mean Tateishi?" Ren said. She took a small sip from the straw of the fruity drink he had bought her.

Tsukada eyed her curiously. "Now how does a cute young girl like you know about Tateishi?"

Ren took a risk. "Girls my age know where the money is." She said confidently and sipped her drink.

Tsukada laughed. "Well you're wrong honey, but who can blame your pretty face. Never needed to be smart, did ya?" He said while he pinched her cheek between his index finger and thumb and pulled her closer.

"If you want money, I'm your man." He whispered. He sat back in his chair and spoke louder again. "Say… Why don't we three go somewhere a little more quiet…?" Tsukada stood up and blonde clung to his side.

Ren fought the urge to vomit. This was not a situation she had ever aspired to be in, and she felt more vulnerable than when she had fought the Akatsuki.

"Why am I wrong?" Ren said with a pouty lip, and remained sitting.

It wasn't the right thing to say.

He grabbed her chin. "Look. Its none of your business. You best learn that now if you want to stay here." He said firmly, then with the stroke of his hair his tone changed back to normal. "Now, you want to join us?" he offered his hand.

Ren tentatively agreed.

They slipped out a door in the back of the bar and Ren prayed that Kakashi was nearby once things got ugly.

They walked a few blocks until they came across a rundown love hotel. Tsukada bought their stay and they walked up the steps to the second floor room. Ren had no plans to be apart of this _menage trois_ and knew she would have to end things soon.

Tsukada closed the door behind the two girls as they entered the hotel. "Now… Where shall we be-" He was met with a swift kick in the stomach that caused him to double over. Before he had the chance to recover from the shock she had tied one of his hands to the bedpost and was working on the other.

``What the... hell?!" Tsukada breathed out between coughs. He let out a number of expletives. "Look sweetheart when I play this way, it's you not me in the ropes. UNTIE ME NOW!" He yelled. Ren slapped him in the face. The blonde girl screamed. Ren hoped that a shady place like this would ignore the screams.

Ren bent down to his level and grabbed his cheek in between her thumb and index finger. "Listen, this is how it works. You tell me what you know about Tateishi and I let you keep your other eye. How does that sound?"

The other girl kept screaming. Ren heard someone coming up the stairs. She didn't move. The handle rattled at door and in walked Kakashi.

_Right on cue._

"SAVE ME!" The blonde yelled and threw herself into Kakashi's arms.

Ren's head turned back to Tsukada. "So… do we have a deal?" Tsukada spit at her. Ren dodged it as only a shinobi could.

"Fine. we'll do this the hard way." Ren's sharingan activated. She reached for some surgical gloves from her pocket and put them on. Tsukada started to sweat. She then reached for his eye - hoping his fear would prevent him from calling her bluff.

Tsukada panicked. "NO WAIT! Who do you think took my other eye?! No, Please!"

"He doesn't have to know." Ren lowered her hand. Tsukada was obviously conflicted. It seemed either way he would be losing. But like most humans, he decided to choose the path that would cause him the least amount of pain in the present.

"Look, look you don't want to go down this path. The guy is a FREAK." he said.

"How so?" Ren replied calmly.

"Look its not really about the money with this guy- he's a scientist, a researcher." He looked at Ren's surgical gloves with fear.

Kakashi was having a difficult time controlling the other girl. The blonde was having a hard time seeing that Kakashi was on Ren's side.

"The money is for his experiments, some of the drugs too, but he doesn't care about that- what he's really after is _children_."

Ren felt eerie. She didn't like the way this confession was going.

"Orphans. He loves orphans, and look- he keeps our town running so you don't want to be asking questions…"

"Have you met him?" Ren asked.

"Of course I have, I told you! His snake took my - eye out!"

_Snake_

Ren's eyes widened. _No._

She ripped off the man's eye patch and sure enough there was a scarred over snake bite beneath.

"...When…. When did this happen?" Ren asked.

"This?" He pointed to his eye from his tied up hand, "A year ago. I just wanted to know what he was doing with the kids ya know? I may not be a good guy but I am not..."

Ren's mind trailed off and she stopped listening. _We were together then. All of this and more behind my back…_

_Oh Orochimaru what have you been doing..._

"What did he look like?" Kakashi asked from behind. He must have calmed the blonde.

Ren couldn't move. She knew - She knew is was _him_.

"Long dark hair, really pale. Looks at people a lot like the way your freaky partner does." Tsukada replied with wide eyes.

Kakashi put a hand on Ren's shoulder.

Ren looked into Tsukada's eyes with her sharingan. His eyes rolled to the back of his head and he passed out.

"He won't remember any of this when he wakes up." Ren said.

"Should you do the same for her?" Kakashi cocked his head to point to the girl.

Ren made eye contact with the blonde who was now standing against the wall.

"No, no I'm fine, please don't kill me!" She yelled.

"I'm not going to hurt you…" Ren said frustrated. "but would it kill you to consider a different profession..." she mumbled under her breath.

The girl looked confused. Then her eyes rolled back and collapsed to the floor.

* * *

Later that evening Ren sat on the bed in her and Kakashi's hotel room silently. She tried to keep her emotions bridled and wasn't doing a very good job.

"Still sitting there?"

Ren was taken aback. Kakashi had just exited the bathroom after an evening bath. He was in a gray T-shirt and pants, but what surprised her was that he was without a mask. He had a lovely face, with a defined jawline and a little beauty mark below his lip.

 _He's so beautiful…_ Ren couldn't help but think.

Her face blushed a little as she looked away. "Oh yeah, sorry… I meant to set up your bed, but I got distracted." Ren got up and went to the cedar chest at the end of the full sized bed to gather some blankets.

"You don't have to do that. I can set up my own bed." He replied and he put his folded up work clothes on one of the shelves in the room.

"No, no, it's the least I can do after you let me have the actual bed. You're sure you don't want the real bec?" She grabbed the two comforters from the chest and closed the lid. She put the blankets on the bed.

"No, I don't."

"Good because I intend to spread out and sleep very well tonight." She added hoping the humor would distract him from picking her brain. "Sorry I didn't think that they wouldn't have an extra futon in this room when I booked the hotel."

Kakashi ended up grabbing one end of the folded blanket and Ren grabbed the other to lay down as a makeshift futon. "Well it wouldn't be much of a honeymoon suite if it did have one." Kakashi replied.

Ren let a small laugh slip under her breath. "No, I suppose not."

She grabbed two pillows from the bed and placed them at the top of the makeshift futon beside her.

"There you go. I mean at least it's more comfortable than sleeping on the ground- which is what we do most of the time anyway." Ren said.

Kakashi nodded in agreement.

"I'm going to head to the shower now, if that's alright."

After Ren showered she found herself staring in the mirror of the bathroom for far too long. She kept thinking about what Tsukada had said. Did she really look at people the way Orochimaru does?

When she exited the bathroom Kakashi was laying in his futon and reading his book. The room was small enough that she needed to walk over him to access the full sized bed.

"I'll try not to step on you…." She said as she hopped over his middle and sat on the bed. Ren checked the time on the wall and began to braid her hair. "My goodness its late. Sorry, I didn't mean to take so long."

"No problem, I got to my favorite chapter anyway…" Kakashi said as he flipped the page and closed the book shut. "Lights off?"

"Yeah." Ren said as she tied off her braid and climbed under the covers.

"So…" Kakashi asked as he stood up to grab the light switch. "...you doing okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Ren said as she stared at the ceiling. She didn't want to make eye contact lest it brought on tears.

Kakashi turned off the lights and got back into his bed.

"Well if you need someone to chat with… I'm here." He said.

Ren smiled.

"It's just… " She paused, trying to gather her words. "You know. No matter what I do I can't seem to escape _him_." She couldn't bring herself to say Orochimaru's name. "And this mission… I felt like… that I had made progress, you know? But then, it just crashed down…"

"Well, if it's any consolation, what Tsukada said was a lie. You aren't like Orochimaru." Kakashi said.

"Thanks." Ren replied.

"Although, those hospital gloves were terrifying."

Ren laughed. "Yeah I know, I always keep a spare, just in case I need to touch something gross."

"And would you really choose the bouncer over me?" He continued referring to her entrance to the club.

Ren laughed again. "What can I say? I like my men beefy."

Kakashi laughed too.

She rolled over the edge of the bed and let her arm fall down the side and grab Kakashi's hand at the bottom. "Thanks for everything." she squeezed his hand. He squeezed back.

"Goodnight."


	21. Winter Song

**Chapter 21 - Winter Song**

The Head and the Heart

Ren and kakashi returned to Konoha the next day and reported to Tsunade. If the news of Orochimaru's doings in Yube was surprising to her she didn't show it.

"Mm… Ren will you stay a moment. The rest of you can be excused." Tsunade spoke addressing both Kakashi and the guard ninja stationed by.

Ren nodded.

The room cleared and she heard the last door close. The wind blew softly from the window.

"I'm sorry to have to be the one giving you this news but… We heard from a spy that Orochimaru has been killed… by Sasuke."

Ren remained still. The piercing feeling of loss came and left in an instant.

"I thought you should be the first to hear it..." Tsunade continued.

 _He isn't dead… remember?_ Ren told herself. She clearly recalled Orochimaru's return by some other means later on in the series.

She cleared her throat and spoke. "Thank you Hokage sama- but I am afraid I must tell you that I don't think Orochimaru is dead yet. It is my belief that he has stored some of himself in the curse mark which his victims wear. I think he will make a return."

"Hm…" Tsunade stared at Ren's neck where her own curse mark was peeking through. "And you aren't aware of exactly how he does this?"

"I'm afraid not."

Tsunade sighed and nodded to Ren, signaling that she could leave.

Ren stopped at the door, touched by Tsunade's consideration to tell her first. "Tsunade sama - Thank you for letting me know. I appreciate it."

Tsunade nodded as she closed the folder. Ren smiled. Glad to see some progress of trust.

"Mm... So what was that about?" Kakashi asked, his nose in his book, as Ren closed the door behind her.

"Oh… Orochimaru has been temporarily incapacitated." Ren said more nonchalantly than she intended to; trying to avoid any feelings on that topic.

Kakashi looked up from his book.

"It's not permanent …" She emphasized then got quieter as though there was more to that sentence.

"...Sadly." Kakashi added for her under his breath.

Ren stared at him, and a part of her wished she shared the same sentiment but knew she never would.

* * *

"Geez, Ren chan, you're eating more than me!" Naruto said.

"I can't help it, I am starved."

Naruto stared and laughed at Ren's ravenous form. She was always an emotional eater but since she got back it really seemed like she was making up for lost time.

Ren swallowed the three dumplings in her mouth and sighed with satisfaction.

"Naruto I'm surprised you wanted to eat here, you're normally a ramen only kind of guy." Ren said.

"Yeah, well I know how much you like dumplings so I figured we could meet here instead."

Ren smiled at his thoughtfulness. "So what's up? What did you want to chat about?"

"Nothing really, I guess I just missed spending time with you and …" He trailed off looking sad.

Ren thought about the time where both her and Sasuke were with Orochimaru and how hard it must have been for Naruto to be left behind.

"... I mean I was with Jiraiya for awhile, but I was always thinking of you two, I hope you know." His cheeks were red with sincerity.

Ren smiled. "I know." She looked down at her plate. "I wish things could be the way they were before…"

"Don't worry Ren. They will be." She looked up to see Naruto smiling widely. "Soon enough you, me, Kakashi sensei and Sasuke will all be sitting at Ichiraku ramen again. I promise." He made a thumbs up.

Ren was impressed with his tenacity, and realized why the series had been named after him. There was something uniquely special about Naruto, the way he said promises really made you believe him.

"I'm looking forward to that day…" Ren said looking down and smiling at her hands.

"And Ren?"

"Yeah?"

"I want you to know, Kakashi sensei and I tried everything to get you back. And I'm sorry to have failed you…"

He wasn't the wild little boy he once was.

"I know Naruto... You don't need to worry about it, I wasn't wanting to be saved."

His face looked surprised.

Ren continued, "I think Sasuke will be the same way. We can try to save him as much as we want, but until he wants to be saved he'll always find a way to escape."

Naruto clenched his fists and focused his eyes. "Well, I will never give up trying... And when he's ready we'll be there."

* * *

The world was becoming a dark place. The talk of war loomed everywhere. In Ren's own neighborhood two had died on run-ins with the Akatsuki recently. She wondered whether she had done the right thing those years ago when she told the Third Hokage the information she knew about the Akatsuki. Would fewer people have died if she had just kept her mouth shut?

Ren spent a significant amount of her free time with Kakashi for that reason. He didn't allow her to play the "What if" game. However when he was out of town, and she wasn't assigned to any particular mission it was much harder to focus.

"Oi, Ren!" Ren looked behind her to see who was calling. Jiraiya gave her a short wave.

"Hey Jiraiya, what's up?"

"I haven't seen you in awhile, how have you been?" He asked.

"Oh I've been…" She thought for a moment "...good, I just got back from a mission around the Hidden Mist so it has been awhile." Ren motioned to the large bags of groceries in her hands to indicate the long time that had passed.

"Let me help you with that." He offered.

"Thanks, I could use a hand." Ren replied.

As they walked back to her apartment Ren was grateful for the company, she hadn't talked with Jiraiya for almost a month. They had a lot to catch up on, and for the first time in a while it wasn't just sad conversations. Jiraiya talked of his recent conquests and Ren shared her and Naruto's recent pranks on Kakashi.

Once they made it to her house Ren offered to make him a cup of tea while he sat at her countertop. The conversation turned to memories of the past as Ren sat down next to him.

He talked of adventures with Tsunade and Orochimaru. Many of them were ones she had never heard before, and they made her smile, to her surprise.

"... Aw Tsunade tries, but she can't resist me. Those were good times, weren't they?" He said with a grin on his face. "But - I've talked about the past enough."

"Yes, you do seem quite nostalgic today." Ren commented with a sip from her tea.

"But, how have you been, I hear you've spent a lot of time with Kakashi as of recently. Are you two dating?"

Ren nearly spit her tea out. " No, no… We aren't dating."

Jiraiya gave her a curious expression. "Well that's too bad, he's a great guy. You could do much worse-"

"I think I prefer your nostalgic conversations…" Ren muttered.

Jiraiya laughed. "I'm sure you do…"

"Why so sentimental, all of the sudden?" Ren posed. "Have you realized you are too old for all of the women you are currently pursuing?"

"Never!" Jiraiya laughed and got up and gathered his belongings. "Actually I'm going on a trip tomorrow, to visit some of my old students… So I guess it has me feeling sentimental."

Ren put her cup down and looked him in the eye. Jiraiya didn't need to say it. She knew who he was visiting, and she knew in her heart he likely wouldn't return.

"Jiraiya -"

"Ren," He held his hand up to motion her to not speak. "You're a good girl. You did everything you could. So, just promise me, you'll be happy okay?"

She nodded slowly. "Mm."

Jirairya's smiled returned to his face. "Thank you for the tea. See you."

And he left out the door.


	22. Break Free

**Chapter 22 - Break Free**

Ariana Grande

Kakashi was staring down at his father's grave. He stood there silent as the soft pitter-patter of the rain hit his head and shoulders. This was a regular ritual for him, rain or shine, but at the news of Jiraiya's death last month Kakashi found himself standing for much longer than he had anticipated.

So many of his friends had died recently…

A few hours later Kakashi walked up to the front of his house soaked through. As he unlocked the front he heard some movement inside.

"Okaeri~" Ren said with a warm smile from his kitchen table. She had two plates of what he expected were cold leftovers from one of the okonomiyaki places in town placed on either side of her.

He smiled.

He thought back to when they were recently walking through town and came across Asuma, Kurenai and their new baby. When Ren saw them she had stopped in her tracks and stared at them with her mouth slightly agape.

Initially Kakashi had been worried that seeing Asuma and Kurenai with their kid had triggered Ren's pain over her life as Karen. But then he realized he was observing something different.

After a moment her mouth had closed and turned up with a smile showing her dimples, the same way she was looking at him now. As she had approached the couple he noticed that Ren was happy to see them. There were tears in her eyes, but not tears of despair.

She cooed to the baby that Asuma was holding, and they engaged in brief small talk with the couple. The moment was short and simple, but something… something about it changed Ren. It was as if from that moment she was able to finally put aside the shroud of darkness that Orochimaru had put on her.

He had just stared at her then; witnessing the change that came over her, so subtle, and yet so apparent to him. Ren always talked of how "time was not her friend", but when it came to healing, he disagreed. She was radiant.

His mind went back to the present.

"Ah - Sorry, I completely forgot about dinner tonight." Kakashi said. "I was…"

"No worries, I know." She stood up and threw a towel over his head that was waiting on the couch- as if it was her home and not his that he was entering. "Go change, and I'll heat our food up."

"Ja… Thanks."

Kakashi walked into his room. He switched for a dry black shirt and heard the sink turn on and off. He smiled at the pleasant humming that accompanied Ren whenever she thought no one could hear from the other side of the door.

He took off the wet mask, and didn't bother putting on a new one- at least not while Ren was here. There was no need.

* * *

Ren woke up and blinked her eyes open. It was morning, and she had dreamt of the Akatsuki. Obito's face was the last thing she saw before the adrenaline woke her up. She heard dogs bark outside of her house and felt the heat that the sunlight brought into the room. Her pulse calmed. She stared at the ceiling.

She didn't know how to bring up Obito. Before she had left the village, Ren had made the folder with all of the information on the Akatsuki, however she had only told the Third by word of mouth the information about Obito being Tobi.

Based on Kakashi's continued kindness since her return, and lack of questions on the subject, she worried that the Third Hokage never had the chance to impart that damning information before his death by Orochimaru.

And if he hadn't…

Ren sat up in her bed and stared at her feet, wishing it was easier to do what she needed to do.

She cared so much for Kakashi. He was her rock when she returned to the village. There's no way she could have come so far without him. But… she didn't want to tell him this secret, didn't want to shatter this image of his best friend, or tell him anything that would drive a wedge in between them. And the more time passed the worse she feared.

Ren stood up finally and brushed her hair. She looked at her appearance in the mirror. She was much healthier now. She had gained back her normal weight and color had returned to her cheeks. But when she stared into the mirror she felt an eerie sense of similarity to Orochimaru once again.

It had been weeks since she felt that way.

As she stared she wondered if this is how Orochimaru felt about all of the secrets he kept from her. Did he worry about how she would react, or was he selfishly indifferent to it all? She would probably never know.

But what she did know was that it was those secrets which destroyed and perverted their friendship, and she would not let it happen with Kakashi.

* * *

"So… Where are you taking me?" Kakashi asked.

"Nowhere in particular… I just figured we could take a walk." Ren replied scratching the back of her neck.

She seemed uneasy, and wouldn't make eye contact with him. Truthfully she had been acting strange all morning… He wondered what this conversation she wanted could be about.

"Mm." He nodded casually.

They walked down a forested path near the area where they trained sometimes. The day was pleasant despite being the middle of summer, and the cicadas buzzed loudly from the trees. Ren walked in front of him when their path narrowed.

Her ponytail swayed from side to side in front of him revealing delicately toned muscles of her back.

When the path widened Ren remained silent, as if she were trying to get the courage to tell him something. They walked side by side in the shade for sometime.

It made him uneasy. It was as if… she was going to confess something to him. Like… feelings. He felt strange. _Why would you even assume something like that Kakashi?_ He chastised himself.

"... Are you hot?" Ren asked him.

"Huh?"

"Your face looks pretty red. Are you feeling okay?"

_No, she wouldn't do something like that._

"I'm okay." He said.

She gave him a dubious look and then took a deep breath.

...But if she was going to confess, what would he do?

Kakashi had seen many confessions throughout the course of his days. Women had both figuratively and on occasion literally thrown themselves at him for most of his life. He had dealt with confessions often enough to not be nervous about them. In fact most of the time he was hardly aware that they were occurring. So… why was this any different?

"Kakashi, I have to tell you something…"

"...Yeah?"

"Something about your friend… Obito…"

Kakashi released the breath he had been holding. This was not what he had expected, and yet somehow despite the topic he felt relief.

"Kakashi, I just want to say first, that I have never meant to keep any secrets from you. I mean you are my best friend, and I - I would never do anything to hurt you."

She paused and twisted her fingers in her hands anxiously.

"But… I know some things about your friend Obito. And I must confess that I've known for quite some time… I -"

"Ren,"

She looked up at him, with a nervous look.

"Ren, I know. I've known for a couple of years now."

"You… have?"

He nodded. "The Third Hokage told me before… you left."

"... He did?" She looked at him incredulously.

"Mm."

"Then why… Why didn't you react? Or push me away?"

"Why would I do that?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Why WOULDN'T you? I gave information, with no evidence, that tarnishes the image of your best friend… and you are just okay with that?"

"Obito is still the same to me." he said touching the scar on his eye. "I've preserved that image of him, and it will never tarnish. I was hurt in the beginning. But- I wasn't ever angry with you. I know you would never say something like that without reason."

Kakashi thought back to when Hiruzen told him the news about Obito's identity as an Akatsuki member. He had wanted to talk with Ren about it, but with the girlfriend and all of the dreams Ren was having, he just kept pushing it off until it was too late.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't brave enough to tell you myself until now." Ren confessed.

"You don't have to apologize for anything…" he added uncomfortably. "You didn't ask for that knowledge, I know that."

Ren's eyes started to dew up and she looked down to avoid his gaze. "I just don't understand how you are always so good… you have every reason in the world to hate the village, take revenge on several people, and yet you just continue on."

The attention made him uncomfortable. "Life hits me the same way it hits other people… I'm no different from them."

She laughed and wiped a tear that came down her face.

"But that's where you are wrong, Kakashi. You are so different from most of them."

She looked up to him smiling with big wet eyes. She walked forward, put her arms around his neck and pulled herself in close. Her cheek rested against his and her hair smelling of vanilla overwhelmed him. At first he wasn't quite sure what to do, not being used to such intimate hugs, but after a moment he found that the comfortable thing was to put his arms around her waist and hug her back.

And to be honest with himself, it felt pretty good.


	23. Falling

**Chapter 23 - Falling**

Trevor Daniel

**Author note:**

Alrighty readers we are getting into the final stretch of this story. Thank you so much for all the people willing to write reviews. You all rock, and I read each one multiple times while smiling. If you have enjoyed it so far please continue to leave reviews. I would very much appreciate it! Here's a juicy chapter for you all as we head into the last lap of this story. Enjoy.

* * *

"You wanted to speak to me?" Ren asked Tsunade when they were alone in her office.

Tsunade was busy rifling through papers on her desk, but when she saw Ren she put them aside and gave Ren her full attention. "Yes, Ren I have a special mission for you." She motioned for her to take a seat.

Ren sat down and waited for the assignment. Tsunade laced her fingers together and put them in front of her mouth before speaking.

"Ren, I need you to go back to your other world."

Ren shifted in her seat anxiously, not sure what prompted this abrupt demand.

Tsunade continued. "The truth is we are inevitably headed towards war, and the thought of this country going through another is abhorrent to me. I've gone over in my head endless times, the information you gave the Third Hokage, and I can't help but think that you are the key to preventing it."

She stared at Ren, gauging her reaction.

"I need you to get me that information about Tobi's plan. This is available in your world isn't it?"

Ren nodded slowly.

"If we could know what he is planning it would change everything, and it would save thousands of lives."

Ren spoke. "Hokage sama, I would be willing to do that for you, but... I don't have my mother's necklace to do so."

Tsunade stared at her intensely.

"I know." Tsunade finally said. Ren knew what she meant by that.

Ren sat silent for a while, not sure how to approach the next part of the conversation.

Tsunade continued it for her. "I need you to bring back Orochimaru and get that necklace back from him. The fate of our village depends on it."

* * *

_"Pour me another one."_

_"Me too."_

Ren heard the conversation among her fellow shinobi play out in the bar. She found herself staring at the bottom of the cup, her face reflecting her fears for the morrow. She swirled it to mess up the image and took a drink.

 _"I need to get home and see my wife… who knows if I'll ever see her again."_ Ren heard an older man say as he got up to leave.

 _"I'll see you tomorrow Kaji,"_ his friend said to him.

The mood was dismal. Several missions were heading out tomorrow, and with the current situation not many were making it back home it seemed. Ren agreed to her mission reluctantly, not that she was really given a choice. To make matters worse she was to head out with none other than Anko Mitarashi. That fact alone was enough to cause her anxiety, but Ren couldn't believe her ears when Tsunade told her that she wanted them to find Kabuto and use the DNA he had implanted in himself to resurrect Orochimaru. Ren imagined that Anko wasn't too happy with those arrangements either.

Tsunade had finished the conversation by smiling and telling Ren that she trusted her to be able to accomplish the mission. Ren wished she could go back to when Tsunade was suspicious of her every move instead…

A familiar voice spoke. "What brings you here?" Ren turned around. Kakashi was standing behind Ren's back.

She stood up too fast. "Oh, you're here?" She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. "I didn't think I would see you before I head off tomorrow…" She couldn't help but feel her eyes get dewy without permission.

"Mm… I didn't think so either… But Guy was determined to make it back for this get together of his." His eyes scanned the room and the unenthusiastic crowd.

Ren looked over towards Guy sensei who had just walked in. He seemed to be the only one in the room who was enjoying himself. She realized her arms were still around Kakashi and quickly removed them. "Would you like a drink? I'm buying," she asked.

"No… I need to keep a clear head." He looked away. His cheeks already looked pink and Ren wondered whether he already had a few drinks. She motioned and Kakashi took the seat next to her.

"What do you want?" The busy bartender asked.

"Nothing, thanks." Kakashi said again. The bartender looked relieved.

Ren stared at Kakashi. He looked nervous, which was rare for him as he usually exuded an indifferent confidence.

"A yenny for your thoughts?" Ren asked with the last sip of her drink. Kakashi looked at her confused; obviously not familiar with the adapted English expression.

"Just thinking about the future… At least I think that's what you are asking." Kakashi stared at Ren for a moment too long and then looked away. "Actually I think I'll have that drink."

She smiled at him and motioned the bartender for one more. He passed her one and she slid it over to Kakashi.

He took a sip and placed his cup on the table. "Can we talk for a second?"

"Sure."

He looked around. "Can we go outside?"

"Mm." Ren nodded.

They walked out the door and stood by a nearby fence which looked over a small canal. The moon was high in the sky tonight and the air was chilly, but not cold. In any other circumstances it would have been beautiful.

"Ren, I just-" Kakashi began.

"WELL LOOK AT THAT!" Guy sensei came up from out of the bar and placed one arm around each of them. "Look at this guy. He drags me all the way from my warm bed to attend this party, only to be antisocial. The party is inside! Eh Kakashi?"

Kakashi was not amused.

"Ja-" Kakashi attempted to speak.

Guy interrupted him. "He was like- Come on Guy, it will be fun. AND BOY IS IT." Ren wondered how someone could get drunk that fast. Kakashi pushed Guy away back towards the entrance.

Kakashi scratched the back of his head and with a squinty smile said, "On second thought, how about I walk you home instead?"

Ren smiled. "Sure. Let me go pay the tab and we can head out." Ren answered, reaching for her wallet.

"I've got it." He went inside before she could enter.

…

They walked mostly in silence. She knew from experience that there was no point in prodding Kakashi. He would say what he wanted if you gave him the time.

"You didn't drink much." He stated.

"No… no point in getting a hangover before tomorrow." She replied.

More silence.

The crickets chirped and the grass swayed with the gentle wind.

Kakashi spoke. "So… I heard about your mission tomorrow."

"Yeah…"

"I wanted to see you before you left. You can do it Ren."

She was grateful for his confidence, but lacked the internal trust within herself. They made it to her apartment.

"Ja… well, it would probably be good for you to get some rest before tomorrow. So…" he trailed off.

She didn't want him to leave.

"Okay." She smiled and the alcohol gave her permission to grab and squeeze his hand. "Be safe while I am gone…" She said and willed herself away awalking up the stairs to her front door.

"Ren -"

She looked down the staircase.

His cheeks were blushing and his hand reached for the back of his head like they always did when he was uncomfortable.

Ren stepped slowly back down the staircase, as her heart began to beat faster.

"... I just want to let you know…" They were eye to eye.

"Yeah?" Ren posed, her eyes wide and searching.

Time seemed to slow down. The moment was full of infinite possibilities and Ren let herself believe that they were possible. Finally after what felt like years, Kakashi spoke.

"I... care for you…" He said.

Ren's heart filled with warmth. It was an indescribable feeling to her.

She leaned forward and pressed her lips tentatively to his mask, feeling the vague outline of his lips. When she pulled back they stared at each other for a moment. Neither intending for the night to go this way.

Then with one smooth practiced movement Kakashi pulled his mask off and wrapped his arms around Ren's waist pulling her in for a close embrace. Her arms reached naturally atop his shoulders as her fingers gently slid through his hair, caressing the base of his head. Their lips touched, soft and tender.

Ren pulled away and whispered into his ear. "Let's go inside." They separated and looked around for peeping Tom's as if nothing had happened, walking into her apartment with a respectable distance between the two of them.

She couldn't close the door fast enough before Kakashi had pinned her against the wall, one hand cupping her face and pulling it closer to his, the other gripping her hip. His lips found hers again and their mouths ebbed and flowed as they discovered a rhythm all their own.

Ren playfully bit Kakashi's lip. He pulled away with a small moan and eyed Ren's couch with a mischievous look. She smiled back and led him gently by the hand to the seating area.

She slowly lay back on the couch and waited for Kakashi to follow, feeling suddenly very vulnerable. He carefully lowered himself on top of her and she felt the weight of his body surround her like a warm blanket. He kissed her tenderly just under her jaw below her ear and then once more on her lips.

When he pulled back, Ren thought her heart would burst.

She looked up at him, her hands gently trailing down his face and said, "I love you."

He smiled and kissed both of her cheeks before raising his head up.

"I love you, too." He said.

Their lips found each other again deepening the kiss, not knowing whether they would have the chance again.


	24. Bring Me to Life

**Chapter 24 - Bring Me to Life**

Evanescence

Naruto stared at Kakashi and Ren suspiciously. They were chatting but something was just off about them. The three of them had gathered in the morning to see Ren off on her mission. The first suspicious thing was that Kakashi was early, Naruto being the last to arrive. Then, the two of them talked and smiled about the strangest things but wouldn't look at each other or him in the eyes when doing so.

"You two are acting weird…" Naruto whispered mostly to himself.

Both looked up to Naruto with red cheeks and denied his accusations.

"What are you talking about?" Ren laughed nervously.

"We're not acting strange…" Kakashi added.

It wasn't like Kakashi Sensei or Ren to be so sensitive. Naruto squinted his eyes and smiled mischievously.

"Oh, I see…," he said.

Both Ren and Kakashi started sweating, their faces getting redder by the minute.

They stared intensely in Naruto's eyes, all the while hearing their own hearts beating very loudly in their ears.

After a long moment Naruto broke the silence: "You two ate the goodbye gift without me!"

Ren and Kakashi stood still for a moment, and then their shoulders relaxed, realizing they were in the clear.

"You got us, Naruto." Kakashi said, while stretching the back of his head smiling. "We got tired of waiting and ate it all." He squeezed the brown paper he was holding behind him, squishing the expensive cakes inside.

"Yeah, you know Kakashi, he's a pig." Ren added cheerfully. Ren and Kakashi made eye contact laughing and then looked away casually.

Ren cleared her throat. "Anyway…"

"Well, I guess that means you owe me when you get back, Ren." Naruto told her with a kind smile on his face. The wind blew softly, the way it always seemed to do when Naruto said something impactful.

Ren smiled back and nodded to her teammate. "I'll make sure to come back and do so." She always appreciated Naruto's confidence in her, and hoped to live up to it.

"Oi, lets go!" A female voice sounded near. The three of them looked over and saw Anko wave her hand as she approached them.

Ren's stomach clenched with anxiety of the impending conversions she would soon be having with her newly assigned teammate. She didn't imagine that Anko was all that fond of her, and who could blame her? Ren too would resent the person she was compared to and would never live up to. She feared there was nothing she could do to mitigate this situation.

She swallowed and decided to face her fears. "Alright, I better head off. Thanks for coming to see me off." Ren said, looking from Naruto to Kakashi and lingering some on Kakashi's eye.

Kakashi nodded to her and spoke, "You've got this."

She smiled and turned away, joining up with Anko.

* * *

Ren and Anko had only been traveling for a little while when the pleasantries ran out and both were left in silence. They really were quite similar it seemed, neither particularly enjoying the other's company but also not trying to be rude.

However after a couple of hours of silence they were interrupted.

The three offenders were rogue nin from the sand, who wanted to pilfer their goods, and didn't give a moment to hesitate. It was made obvious then that Anko and Ren were trained from the same master as the two of them seamlessly disarmed the three rogues in what some would consider record time.

"Not bad for someone who failed the chuunin exams." Anko said smiling to Ren after the ordeal was taken care of.

Ren cleaned her kunai and placed it back in her pocket. She was happy for the compliment as inaccurate as it was. She tried to think of something clever to say back, but everything she thought of seemed to push boundaries or would come off as 'too close to home' so she just said "thanks" instead.

Anko seemed to recognize the internal struggle Ren was having, perhaps as only one in a similar circumstance could. They started jumping through the trees on their journey again when Anko spoke.

"You know… you're not at all what I expected you to be."

Ren made eye contact with her. "I'm not?" she asked, curious as to where this conversation would go.

"No offense, but you aren't like the girl Orochimaru described to me so often as a child. He made you out to be some sort of Goddess. Perfect in every way, but you are just… normal."

Ren smiled, "I'll take that as a compliment."

"You should." Anko replied.

Ren decided to be brave. "... I'm sorry for how he compared you to Ume. Trust me when I say I understand how you feel."

Anko seemed intrigued. "You were compared to… yourself?"

"The Ume that Orochimaru remembers, no one will ever live up to. Not even Ume herself."

Ren allowed herself to remember the bits of conversations she had suppressed for the past year. The subtle things said, the unbelievable expectations.

"Isn't it strange that we're sent to rescue the one man that caused us both so much harm..." Anko said to herself quietly.

Ren made eye contact with her and nodded, grateful to have someone who understood the horror of the mission they were to accomplish.

* * *

The next couple of days of travel were uneventful. They were heading northwest to where Kabuto had last been spotted, and were making great time. In fact the lack of contact they had with other people made them both suspicious of being followed. Ren took some time to use her sharingan to survey their path but every time she checked there was no one to be found. But even so they remained wary.

She and Anko talked more easily now, though neither brought up Orochimaru by name again. No need to bring up the inevitable sooner than necessary.

On the eve of the third day they rested at the edge of a waterfall with good tree coverings.

"... I think we'll find him tomorrow," Anko said over her dinner that night. She was pouring over the map and marking the progress they had made in the day.

"What makes you think that?" Ren asked.

Anko rubbed her shoulder where her curse mark was. "Call it intuition." She looked up at Ren, "It doesn't seem to affect you the same way though does it?"

Ren knew Anko was referring to the curse mark and the accompanying pain. Ren thought of her response carefully. "No, it doesn't."

Anko looked up from the map and took another bite from the bread she was eating. "Why do you think that is?"

Ren looked over at the waterfall. There was a bird's nest on the cliff and the mother was feeding her chicks. "When I was with… him, I learned that the curse mark was made with a lot of my chakra to begin with. That's why when I was bit I didn't feel much pain, because the substance was primarily my own and my body didn't reject it." She didn't mention that the curse mark seemed to let Orochimaru get inside her head with dreams in lieu of the pain.

"Mm," was Anko's only reply.

Ren remained staring at the bird's nest. Her brow furrowed.

"Anko, someone's here."

Anko looked up from her dinner sensing their presence too. Both women stood up and took defense positions. Anko asked, "Do you know who it is?"

Ren only nodded.

Out of the ticket of trees behind them walked her old teammate Sasuke.

"Well look who we've found here…" A boy with almost shoulder white length hair said who stood just behind Sasuke. "If it isn't the legendary Ume Uchiha." Ren had never met him in person but remembered his interactions with Sasuke. His name was Suigetsu, she thought. There was another boy behind him, although he was more man than boy and looked like he could hold his own quite easily. His name started with a J but Ren couldn't recall it.

Sasuke stood there confidently with a dead look in his eyes. Was he really the same Sasuke, her friend, her family? He was now much taller than she was now. Even in the year they hadn't seen each other he had grown, and his eyes had darkened.

"It's been a long time, Ren." Sasuke said.

Ren's brow furrowed more. She remembered their last interaction, her vomiting on the floor, heartbroken, weak. It was not a time she ever liked to recall.

"What do you want from us, Sasuke?"

Sasuke took his time replying and adjusted his belongings casually, a show that he was not intimidated in the slightest by them. "We're here for the same reason you two are."

Suigetsu gave Sasuke a peculiar look. It seemed as though he hadn't been let in on what that plan actually was.

"Why bother us then? We don't have Kabuto." Anko asked with gritted teeth.

"Because first…" Sasuke continued speaking, "I intend to eliminate the competition."

Ren couldn't believe her ears. Who was this man? What had he become?

The redhead boy-man in the back objected. "Sasuke, if you are wanting to bring back Orochimaru do you really think killing Ume Uchiha is wise? She's the only leverage we'd have over him."

Sasuke's eyes remained on Ren's. "That's exactly why I want her dead. Orochimaru is too unpredictable with her around."

And with that the fight of Ren's life began.

No words could do the battle justice. Both activated their sharingan and began moving at a speed that only the Uchiha could. Ren's mind didn't have time to think, only to react. Sasuke was hitting her with everything he had. His hand signs moved quickly in patterns that only she could see.

She couldn't believe this was happening, not her Sasuke. Each powerful blow she only reacted to defensively. She knew she wasn't stronger than Sasuke, and she didn't want to be. She loved him, he was her family, the only family she had left. She didn't want to hurt him even if she could.

Anko took on the other two and it hardly seemed a fair fight from what Ren could glimpse.

Sasuke hit her with something hard that caught Ren and sent her spiraling backwards over the waterfall. She used the water as a cover as she caught her breath. Sasuke jumped down and stood on the water waiting impatiently for her to resurface.

When she did, it caught him off guard from behind. They began fighting in hand to hand combat on the water both just as quick as the other. Ren blocked his every attack which just fuelled his growing cold anger. Eventually Ren blocked an attack and bounced back giving them several meters of distance between them.

"Sasuke, you don't need to do this! You and I, we're the only family we have left!"

That seemed to strike a nerve in Sasuke. His eyebrows lowered and he showed malice on his face.

"Family?" He laughed. "I'd rather be alone in that case."

Ren was shocked and hurt.

"What have I done?" She asked desperately.

Sasuke regained control over his facial expressions and peered at her with dead eyes once again. His hands shifted into the appropriate signs and then attacked Ren with snakes, but she had been with Orochimaru longer and knew how to use those jutsu better than he did.

She blocked and redirected the snakes elsewhere. Her mind flashed back to all of the memories she and Sasuke had together. The good times, the bad times. They had always been there for each other… until…

She used the same jutsu Sasuke had but instead of using the snakes to kill she directed them only to constrain. It wouldn't take him long to escape but she didn't need too much time.

"Sasuke…" she said out of breath. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I abandoned you and left you alone in the leaf village. It was selfish of me. That's not what family is supposed to do."

Sasuke's rage returned as he sliced through the constraint snakes with hot iron swords.

"... That's what family always does!"

He increased his attacks with a fury Ren could not defend against. She tried her best to deflect the blows so that neither her nor Sasuke would get hurt. The moves infuriated him more.

"Attack me, you weakling!" He yelled.

A kunai skimmed past her face nearly killing her, but she moved quickly and instead it cut her cheek. It seemed to stop Sasuke in his tracks for a moment.

Ren touched the blood on her cheeks with her hand and looked up at Sasuke. She replied very coolly.

"Never."

His attacks began again and this time there was nothing more she could do. She was exhausted, and almost completely drained of Chakra. She tripped and fell back against a large treetrunk. She looked up to see a sword less than a centimeter from her nose. She knew she would die here, but she never guessed it would be at the hand of her _brother._

Ren looked up to see Sasuke's face and saw for the first time in a long time the hurt boy who was her friend. He looked at her, drew the sword back and with one smooth movement knocked her out hard with the back of the sword handle.


	25. Young and Beautiful

**Chapter 25 - Young and Beautiful**

**Somo**

" _... I'm not interested in his plans…"_

" _... This is insurance…"_

" _... You fool…"_

" _... Leave her…"_

" _... Over my dead body…"_

Ren's whole being and brain hurt indescribably. Was she dead or alive? She didn't know… She was so tired. She just wanted to sleep forever and never wake up.

" _... we'll do it your way…"_

" _...As if you could..."_

" _Orochimaru…"_

Her mind went back to a memory, not a memory of this world but of a life past. She was twenty-one again and visiting Japan.

"Karen, look it's the bridge!" Hope, one of Karen's friends said to her.

Karen looked up having been lost in thought and stared wide-eyed at the Kintaikyo bridge in Iwakuni Japan.

"Wow, it's magnificent." She said.

Her other friend, Kai, driving the car, went on to explain the history of the bridge with Karen only half listening. Normally she would be paying attention to every detail but today she couldn't help but find herself lost in her own thoughts while looking at that marvelous bridge. She was feeling off… but couldn't explain why.

They found parking and walked to the base of the bridge. It was April and the area was crowded with tourists as per usual during that season. Karen and her friends stopped and got some ice cream, Hope being brave enough to try one of the infamous flavors of that area.

"I told you not to get ramen flavored…" Kai said after Hope's face revealed her disgust.

"I know, I should have listened." Hope moaned. After sticking her tongue out she laughed and asked. "Hey, Karen, do you wanna walk the bridge with us?"

Karen looked at the beautiful Sakura trees with all the couples taking pictures underneath them.

"No thanks, I wanna go explore around the shops a little bit. But why don't you two go?" Karen replied pleasantly. She knew Kai was interested in Hope and was wanting a chance to spend some time alone with her that day. Kai gave Karen a mouthed "thank you" when Hope's back was turned, and she replied with a "you're welcome" as the two of them went off to pay the fee to walk the bridge.

Karen finished her ice cream slowly, and enjoyed the nice weather and sakura blossoms before heading off to check out the shops. She wasn't Japanese, but had always felt at home in Japan for some reason. As she walked towards the Iwakuni castle she saw a small shop with a white snake logo quite visible. She entered inside and browsed the many trinkets. She saw a lot of white snake omiyage and debated purchasing them.

The old lady owner at the head of the shop noticed her interest and told her in simple Japanese that this area was famous for the white snake. Karen asked her a follow up question in decent enough Japanese that the grandma elaborated on the history of the snake, happy to do so comfortably in her native language. Karen had always liked snakes, as eerie as they were to some, and the white snake reminded her of Orochimaru from the Naruto manga that she had liked so much as a teenager.

Karen picked a snake magnet to buy, but the grandma got a look in her eye and shook her head. She told Karen to wait and came out with a small blue gem necklace on a thin chain instead.

Karen wasn't one for jewelry, so she initially thought to reject it, wanting some snake memorabilia instead, but something about that necklace drew her to it. Without really thinking about it she told the lady she would buy the necklace.

The Grandma told Karen "she had a feeling this is something she would like" and offered to put the necklace on her. Karen agreed, and looked at herself in the small shop mirror. When Karen asked for the price however, the grandma just shook her head and with a twinkle in her eye told her it was a gift.

Karen exited the gift shop happy, albeit a little confused at the old lady's refusal of her money.

On the small trail back to the bridge, Karen stopped in her tracks when she saw something unusual. On one of the rocks nearby sunbathing was a small white snake with piercing eyes. She couldn't believe her luck in finding one of them.

She and the snake made eye contact and then she noticed a glint of light below her chin. She looked down at the necklace, confused at the momentary glow and convinced herself that it was due to some reflected light.

But when she looked back at the snake he was gone, and so she followed the trail back to her friends.

* * *

Orochimaru walked in the cave listening to the drips from the water that gathered near the points in the ceiling only to meet a splashing fate at the bottom of the cave. In front of him laid Ume, or perhaps he should think of her as Ren, he wondered to himself, as she seemed to prefer that name in recent years, slumped over limply on Jugo's back .

One of the water droplets landed near her face and splashed onto her nose causing her face to wrinkle up. He wished he could redirect the flow of water so as not to disturb her further.

 _No, I think I shall always call her Ume,_ he decided for himself after her face calmed again.

This wasn't how he imagined their reunion to be, should it ever have occurred in the first place. He had not exactly been "living" by traditional definitions in the past months, merely observing through his experiments, Kabuto in particular. But Kabuto had made a mess of things, getting involved in politics, and it was only to be expected that Sasuke would eventually stop Kabuto to get more answers.

But that is how Orochimaru always played the game. _Make yourself indispensable_ , he thought to himself.

Still time in limbo had had its effect on him. Perhaps the decision to choose Sasuke as his future dwelling was… unwise. Afterall he had underestimated his strength which had led to limbo in the first place. His eyes went back to Ren as she began to stir.

_But there's no use dwelling about the past._

* * *

Ren first recognized that she was uncomfortable, then the feeling gradually grew to a pulsing dull pain in her head and right arm. She wondered why her head hurt so bad. Images of Sasuke flashed before her.

She opened her eyes. She was being carried by someone.

At first she feared she was blind because of the continued darkness, but after a few blinks her eyes she realized that her eyes were covered by a cloth. She smelled the damp chilly air and figured they must be somewhere underground. She tried to move her wrists but found they were also tied together so that the palms were facing opposite and she couldn't make any hand signs.

"Hey, Sasuke I think she's awake." The man who was carrying her said. His voice was low, she figured it was the redhead.

Ren thought of young childhood days playing "hide and seek" when she would cover her face under the stairs and genuinely believed that so long as you couldn't see the searcher, they couldn't find you either. She wished for that now.

The person who was holding her stopped walking. She heard a sigh of relief from someone to the right, and assumed they had been travelling for awhile. How long had she been out?

The man carrying her slid her off his back against a cold rock wall. He was gentle not to hit her head against the wall, which she internally thanked him for.

Sasuke didn't necessarily afford her the same kindness when taking off her bandana moments after.

They made eye contact. Ren wished to see the innocent eyes she glimpsed moments before her blackout, but unfortunately found them rather inimical.

"... So, you decided not to kill me?" She asked him coldly, knowing it put her in an invidious situation.

Sasuke responded back with equal sentiment. "Still debating it."

She heard the familiar low chuckle from across the room and clenched her jaw when she saw the amber eyes. She was sure her face revealed it all.

"Now there's no need to be reckless, is there?" Orochimaru spoke.

Ren could see from the corner of her eye Sasuke's mouth turn up in a small smile at her facial reaction to seeing Orochimaru. She really had been passed out for quite some time she reckoned, if they were able to bring him back without her noticing.

Sasuke turned his head and made eye contact with Orochimaru. "You get her after the deal is done."

Orochimaru, still smiling, gave a small nod to that.

It took a moment for Ren's brain to catch up. Why was Sasuke using her as a bargaining chip with Orochimaru? Didn't he know that Orochimaru _let_ her go? …

Ren and her old sensei made eye contact again.

… _Maybe he doesn't know._

As if Orochimaru could read her mind, his next words confirmed her thoughts. "It's been a long time, Ume. I pray you learned your lesson about escaping, because another try at that won't be successful for you, I fear."

Ren wondered whether time being dead had improved his character or not. She certainly didn't trust him to play along with Sasuke for her benefit but perhaps it would afford her enough time to convince him to give her the necklace.

Ren expected Sasuke to limit her interactions with Orochimaru during the break lest she escape with him, but on the contrary Sasuke seemed rather disinterested in the two of them entirely. Sasuke appeared to think that both Orochimaru and Ren were too weak to escape, and while offended, lucky for him he was correct.

They were given some rations for food, and left mostly to themselves while those who had been travelling rested. The exception being Sasuke, who sat near the furthest reach of the cave and seemed not to sleep at all.

Only after the redhead and sharkboy were asleep did Orochimaru slink over to where Ren was sitting.

"It's been awhile." he said to her while standing over her. His looming figure cast a shadow in the already darkened cave. It was only when she looked up and acknowledged his presence that he sat down next to her.

Ren wished Kakashi were near.

"This is not where I expected to find you, surely I taught you better than to be captured." He said.

"You seemed to forget that you yourself are in the same predicament." Ren added cooly.

Orochimaru smiled at that remark. "I prefer to think of myself as paying off a debt to Sasuke for restoring my life. I happen to be quite invested in what he will do with his new found knowledge..."

Ren turned her head away and looked forward to where Sasuke was sitting silently. She was not interested in listening to Orochimaru twist any words today. He seemed to take the hint.

His smile faded from his face momentarily and he repositioned himself putting more space between them. "... But that's not what I came over to talk with you about."

Ren remained focused on Sasuke.

There was silence while Orochimaru carefully reached into his pocket. Ren's face turned to him wondering what he was doing. When they made eye contact he put a finger to his mouth to remind her they were being listened to. After making sure Sasuke was not moving, he put the finger down and his other hand remained frozen in the pocket.

He continued. "All the time inside my own head recently has given me a lot to think about. I wouldn't normally admit to any of this so I would appreciate it if you would listen to my next words as they are likely never to be repeated."

Ren's eyes widened and her stomach clenched.

"I'll keep it short and simple as you seem to have grown to distaste my manner of speaking. I abhor looking at the past- but for you I'll briefly return. As you know I haven't been a good man in many years, but I hope you will extend to me the courtesy of believing that I wasn't always this way."

His eyes turned up as he reflected on memories.

"There was a time when you were the very center of my existence. If only it could have remained that way..."

Sasuke stirred. Orochimaru looked to him and then back to Ren.

"... But time has never been on our side has it?" He smiled again, but this time with a sincere smile meant to soften the sad truth revealed.

The statement evoked buried emotion in Ren and she struggled to keep it controlled. Tears rose in her eyes. Orochimaru pulled the necklace out of his pocket silently and folded it into Ren's hand. He held her hand with both of his.

Sasuke stood up, suspicious of what was taking place.

He whispered the next words. "Don't cry dear, we've managed to meet in two different realms now. Perhaps we will figure it out on the third try..."

Ren blinked and tears slid down her face and nodded.

Before Sasuke could reach them, Orochimaru removed his hands and Ren blinked.

And then there was darkness.


	26. The Otherside

**Chapter 26 - The Otherside (GATTACA)**

Michael Nyman

Ren opened her eyes and saw hints of light peeking through at a broken window. She sighed a breath of relief and bent over her knees when she realized where she was. She was in Iwakuni, Japan again. Inside an old abandoned home. One of her old friends whose name she couldn't remember had pointed it out to her years ago when they visited the town.

She remembered what occurred only moments before and felt emotion swell in her heart. She didn't have time to dwell on what Orochimaru had done for her but she thanked him silently for being there for her one last time. She then exited out the creaky door and down the street.

The sun was setting but Ren remembered enough about the small city to find her way around. She walked quickly towards the center, knowing there was a mall there that would likely have the books she was looking for, assuming she could get there before it closed. She didn't want to have to be here more than necessary.

She passed a few older ladies who stared at Ren as she briskly walked. Her clothes were certainly not "normal", and she was sure that peaked their interest. But Ren couldn't worry about that now. She needed to get to that store.

After 30 minutes or so she was out of the countryside and in the major part of the city. She was shocked at the cars going in and forgot how noisy the vehicles were.

It didn't take too long before she spotted the YouMe mall. She heightened her pace, she didn't know what had already occurred back home and if she would be too late to bring useful information.

She entered the mall and walked normally. Having security throw her out for looking too excitable would put her behind schedule. It didn't take too long to find a store with lots of bright colors and sounds and figured it would have manga.

She walked to the back and saw what she was looking for. A whole shelf dedicated to Naruto. It surprised her at first to see the cardboard cutout of Naruto behind the books with a thumbs up. It was so strange. This section of books, of characters written in 2D, how is it that it existed here? She carefully grabbed the last volume, and then each one before, afraid to open them up. It felt like top secret information she shouldn't see.

Ren ended up grabbing around ten total, hoping that would be enough. She put them in her shopping basket when she saw a book called Boruto. Her jaw dropped. Ren could tell immediately that the boy on the front of the cover was Naruto's future son. She smiled, but forced herself not to pick it up.

She quickly made her way to the checkout line. She debated just vanishing from inside the store but didn't want to become a strange conspiracy theory in case she ever needed to come back again.

The checkout lady welcomed her and looked around at her konoha forehead band.

"You must be a real fan." She said in her polite Japanese.

"You could say that," Ren replied.

"Too bad. Last month we celebrated the big anniversary. 50% discount on all fan merchandise." She pointed up to a sign above her.

Ren's eyes widened as she read the sign. She saw the original manga release date listed: September 21st, 1999. The day she was born into this world. She had never known that.

"Huh… Well isn't that curious," she said to herself.

* * *

"What do we do Hokage sama? Anko is severely injured and there's no sign Ren survived at all."

"She survived." Tsunade said matter-of-factly to the concerned Jounin.

Her response frustrated him. "There's no evidence to suggest that!"

Anko had been found by scouts only two days prior. She was alive, but only just barely, and Ren was nowhere to be found. They had discovered only too late that Sasuke Uchiha and his gang had ambushed them. They were unfavorable circumstances for sure and Tsunade herself was unsure of what had occurred. But when she had talked to Kakashi and Naruto about it they assured her that Sasuke Uchiha, however treacherous he may be, would never kill Ren.

Coming from Naruto, the forever optimist, that opinion was expected, but it was made more believable by Kakashi. Tsunade had to remember though that Kakashi's personal feelings, though secret he may have thought, could be showing bias in order to prevent dealing with the grief that would most certainly ascend on him if in fact Ren Uchiha were found dead.

Even so, Tsunade also felt that Ren was out there.

"... Well maybe she joined them then. Because that is the only alternative." The man said.

Tsunade sighed, tired of these conversations.

"Hokage sama we have to make decisions, there is no time left to wait." He pleaded.

"... Well then it sounds like I made it just in time." A voice said.

Tsunade looked up at the gust of wind that seemed to come from the corner of her office without a window. Ren was standing there, bag in hand.

The man in her office took a step back and his mouth gaped open.

Ren walked towards the desk, the shocked man moving out of her way, and placed the paper bag on Tsunade's desk.

Tsunade stood up, "Daiichi, leave my office now."

He didn't need to be told twice and quickly closed the door behind him.

Ren smiled. "Mission complete."

* * *

The next few hours were a blur of reading and planning between the two women. Ren was impressed with Tsunade's stamina. She managed to flip through the books without gasping even at the surprising details.

As much as the comic books focused on the victory, Tsunade couldn't help but be internally overwhelmed at the prospect of another war. Each of these nameless "characters" that died page after page were people she knew and vowed to serve as Hokage.

Tsunade closed the volume she had in her hand with a sigh and looked over to another one she had already reviewed and put to the side. She picked it up again and looked at the dog-eared page she had folded. She opened it up and saw her Dan looking back at her, talking to herself on the page due to the reanimation jutsu.

She missed him more than words could express. She touched the page with her finger delicately.

The timeline was already much different than the one presented in these books. According to this manga the war had already begun by the time Sasuke had brought back Orochimaru to life.

But that had occurred one day ago according to Ren.

They had no time to lose.

She wouldn't let another war come to pass.

* * *

A group of about 50 elite ninja from the surrounding villages were to be sent to end Obito Uchiha before he gathered all of the Jinchiruki and could perform the infinite tsukuyomi. They had a good idea as to where Tobi - Obito was, and they were going to ambush him.

Tsunade had first spoken to the members of team seven plus Sakura to let them know their essential roles in the plan. Naruto, rather than be overwhelmed, took his place confidently, vowing to prevent the war and bring Sasuke back to the village. Tsunade expected nothing less from the future Hokage. If they were to succeed he would have to.

After that meeting Tsunade gave specific instructions to the men which left Sakura and Ren alone in the hallway.

Ren noticed the unusual quietness that surrounded the pink haired girl.

"Are you… alright Sakura?" She asked. She and Sakura weren't really friends. In fact Ren had on more than one occasion feared talking with the bubble-gum girl lest she be attacked for her friendship with Sasuke. The girl she was sitting next to was very somber now.

"Yeah… I just don't understand why I'm part of this special mission. That's all. I'm not a part of team seven and its not like I have any major skill that would contribute… They really should send you instead."

"Don't underestimate yourself. I specifically requested you for this mission." Ren replied.

Sakura looked back confused. "Why?"

"Let's just say that I've always thought of you as an honorary team seven member."

"Really?" She said, audibly surprised.

"Really. In fact, most of the time I think you are more team seven than I am. I mean, you, Naruto and Sasuke all trained under different members of the legendary sannin. It seems pretty poetic to me. If I hadn't jumped in time I'm positive it would have been you insead of me."

"Thanks, I guess," Sakura said to herself. Then blushing she said, "I'm sorry for terrorizing you about Sasuke all these years. That was pretty unfair of me I guess."

Ren thought back to the times she felt the wrath of Sakura and laughed with her eyes closed. "Yeah… You're crazy. But, I think your devotion to Sasuke will pay off one day."

"...You do?" Sakura said, obviously touched.

Ren closed at her seriously and nodded her head. "Mm… Call it a hunch, but I'm pretty good at predicting things like that."

Sakura smiled.

* * *

By the next day the ninja for the special assignment from Konoha were assembled. Members from the other countries had already left towards the central meet up location.

Ren stood near Naruto and Kakashi in order to wish them well. They had hardly had a moment to speak since she had returned, every moment having been spent with Tsunade planning the operation. Today, she would not be leaving with her friends on this mission, instead Tsunade had wanted to keep her in headquarters, in case she needed more information.

"Naruto, Kakashi, I -"

Their goodbyes were interrupted by the Hokage's voice.

"This mission is likely the most important one any of you will ever be sent on. Whether you accomplish your task or not is the difference between war and peace. Thankfully, due to some intel from our very own Ren Uchiha, we have the upper hand. The following knowledge you will hear is only privy to your ears and should not be repeated outside this room. Do you understand?"

"Hai!"

"Good."

While the instructions were given Ren felt Kakashi's hand carefully find her own. She held his hand tight as they looked towards the front. His thumb brushing her knuckle lightly. There wasn't time for special goodbyes now. So for them, this moment would have to do.

Less than thirty minutes later she was seeing them off, praying that she would have the opportunity to hold his hand once more.

* * *

It was over three weeks later when news came that the members of the team had returned to the village. When Ren heard the news she dropped the flowers she was holding and didn't bother picking them up again as she ran towards the entrance.

The mission was much longer than anticipated. According to Inoichi they had accomplished the primary goal of the mission two weeks prior only to be held up by Sasuke on their way back. Tsunade having read the manga had responded calmly knowing this fight was inevitable. She only smiled and expressed her faith in Naruto's ability.

She effortlessly hopped over buildings as she neared the front. As she stood on top of a building she saw Naruto and entrance was chaotic, but she quickly maneuvered through to reach them.

"Ren chan?" Naruto said when he saw her.

She hugged him aggressively, nearly knocking him over and then saw Sasuke over his shoulder. She pulled out of the embrace only to wrap one arm around Sasuke's neck and pull the three of them altogether.

"Team seven back together again." Naruto said, partly suffocated by Ren with tears in his eyes.

Ren's eyes also filled with tears from the sentiment and she looked at Sasuke, who gave a reluctant smile and a nod but didn't resist the embrace.

"Aren't you forgetting about me, guys?"

Ren let go of her teammates and looked behind her when she heard the voice, and for the first time did not conceal her happiness when seeing Kakashi.

"Kakashi..." She whispered as she neared him and put both hands on his face pulling him close.

"Hi Ren," he replied quietly, smiling through the mask and putting his arms around her waist. She wrapped her arms around him. They held each other close for far too long, not caring if anyone else saw.

"I told you they were going to end up together..." Naruto elbowed Sasuke.

Sasuke sighed like he was annoyed. "Yeah, I guess I should have known."

Ren and Kakashi could not have cared less what they were saying.

* * *

"Ren, I appreciate you coming by."

"Of course Tsunade sama."

"I just wanted to let you know that the books have been destroyed, and no one besides me ever saw the contents on the pages."

Ren nodded, relieved.

Tsunade cleared her throat. "Also, as someone who recently bore the burden of knowledge you have had for so long, I commend you for your efforts. I know from my brief experience that it wasn't easy."

Ren was touched by Tsunade's words.

"Thank you- "

Tsunade put up her hand to stop Ren from speaking. "No, thank you. No one besides you and I will ever know the extent of the casualties we could have faced. So thank you, Ren. Thank you so much."

There was a moment of silence between them as the two women continued eye contact. Then Ren smiled to herself, never having expected such high praise from Tsunade in her life.

"Anyway," Tsunade continued, uncomfortable with praising, " I hereby relieve you of your burden. And I wish you a happy life from now on where you can make decisions without fear of impact on the future."

Ren stood and bowed deeply. "I will do that, Hokage sama."


	27. Epilogue - At the Beginning

**Chapter 27 - Epilogue - At the Beginning**

Richard Marx, Donna Lewis

-13 years later -

"Good morning." Ren heard as her husband rolled over and put his arm around her. He pulled her in close and buried his face in her hair.

"Morning." She replied and turned over to look at his gorgeous, partially obscured face in the layers of her hair. Ren ran her fingers through his wild gray hair. He smiled. With the exception of some wrinkles around his eyes and mouth he looked as young as their wedding day.

Kakashi leaned forward and kissed her.

"Hey, Daaad." They heard from down the hall.

Kakashi sighed and closed his eyes. "How come they never call your name?" He mumbled.

Ren rolled back over to her side of the bed and sat up with a smile across her face."It's because I taught them young that you are the _nice_ parent." She grabbed her robe and winked at her husband who was more reluctant to leave the warm space.

Someone knocked at their bedroom door.

"Come in." Kakashi said as he begrudgingly sat up.

Twelve year old Hikari Hatake opened the door and addressed his father. "Hey Dad... are you ready?" A quick look at his father's shorts and t-shirt told him otherwise.

"Ja, give me a moment to put on a mask…" Kakashi stood up and grabbed some clothes from the dresser next to his bed. "... Is there any way I can convince you two to switch to this evening for training?"

Hikari looked out the bottom corner of his eyes and scratched the back of his head. "Aw… I have plans."

Kakashi gave a knowing look to his wife.

From looks to personality Hikari nearly mirrored his father. He had wild gray-white hair, was top of his graduating academy class, and things didn't really get under his skin. One could mistake the two of them at that age unless they brought up the topic of _girls._ Or to be fair, one girl in particular. To the surprise and confusion of both of his parents Hikari had developed quite the crush on the daughter of Sasuke and Sakura Uchiha, Sarada. Ren had often expressed privately to Kakashi how this was _karma_ taking effect after all of her years making fun of Sakura's obsession with Sasuke. Now her own flesh and blood had taken fancy to an Uchiha. The worst part was that girl Sarada couldn't care less.

"Jeez, wonder what your plans are…" Emiko Hatake said as she walked into the bedroom.

Hikari shot her a glare, but was wise enough to know that the teasing from his little sister would only increase if he reacted.

"Alright, this morning it is." Kakashi replied.

"You guys want breakfast before you head out?" Ren walked over to her son and brushed some of his hair out of his eyes.

"I already ate, thanks Mom."

"How about you, Emi?" Ren turned to her daughter, but kept her hands to herself. Emiko wasn't big on physical touch.

"No thank you, I'm good."

Emiko was a curious ten-year-old and seemed less a blend of her parents but more so her grandparents. While she had long brown hair like Ren, Emiko had inherited brilliant green eyes from her paternal grandmother for which she was named after, and fiery ambitious personality that could only be described as "Uchiha'' which notably contributed much to her parents' rising blood pressure.

"Well, I guess my work is done then." Ren smiled at her husband. "Oh and you kids remember to help dad with cleaning out the storage once you're done, while I'm running errands?"

Both kids mumbled their unenthusiastic replies.

Kakashi pulled over his shirt and finished dressing. "Alright, let's head out you two."

"Love you, have fun training- be safe." Ren said as her husband and children left the bedroom and exited out the front door.

* * *

Later that day after both children had successfully exhausted their father with chidori training they ate lunch and attempted to clean out the storage as per instructions from their mother.

"What is it we're supposed to do?" Emiko asked her father.

"We need to declutter this space, and throw out the old stuff." Kakashi replied as he looked around the dusty old storage closet. "Most of this stuff hasn't been touched since your Mom and I moved in here after our marriage… Just check with me before throwing things out."

Emiko picked a corner of the room and sat down to a dusty box.

"Gross." She said as she lifted the lid and a dead cockroach fell off. The inside had been spared of roaches and dust thankfully. As she rummaged through the box she saw old clothes, and some jewelry, nothing special.

"Woah, is this Mom's wedding dress?" Hikari said from the opposite side of the room.

Emiko turned around to see her father walk over to her brother. "It is." Kakashi replied. He smiled with his eyes and picked the dress up to inspect it. "I didn't know she had saved it. Hmmm. What a day that was…"

Emiko rolled her eyes at her father's romantic nostalgia and turned back to her box. Her parents and brother were such dopes.

She pulled out the clothes for the "throw away" pile and put the jewelry in the keep. As she neared the bottom of the box she noticed some assorted photos. Most were of her parents before they were married. They looked young and happy. Emiko stopped at one. It was a picture of her grandparents and her dad as a baby. He looked just like Hikari. But her mom was also in the picture, but she was… at least 10 years older than her dad in it.

She looked over to her father who was still talking to Hikari about his wedding.

_That can't be right… Mom's definitely younger than Dad._

But as she stared back at the photo, she couldn't figure out any other explanation.

_Is my mom some kind of a cougar?_

She felt sick at the thought. Emiko pulled out another photo. This one was of her mom at around Hikari's age. She was standing next to a pale man with long black hair. They were both smiling in the picture.

_Who is this guy?_

"Hey Dad." she called out.

"Mm?"

"Who's this?" Emiko asked.

Kakashi walked over and took a look at what his daughter was holding. His eyes widened ever so subtly.

"Ah… This is the man who trained your mom."

"...What's his name?" she asked, not being fooled by his vague answer.

"Uh well…." Kakashi stalled.

Hikari walked over and looked at the pictures in Emiko's hands. His eyes focused on the picture with his grandparents. "Woah, Dad is this mom? Wait- Is mom _older_ than you?"

"Um…"

Emiko looked at her father.

_Why wouldn't he just answer the questions?_

"Wait- When did Mom graduate from the academy, how old is she in this photo?" Emiko asked.

"Who cares about that… How old is Mom _now_?" Hikari asked as he grabbed the grandparents' photo from his sister.

Kakashi began to sweat, unsure of how much to tell his children.

"It's… complicated." Kakashi replied as he scratched the back of his head.

"How is age complicated?" Emiko asked, frustrated.

"Look, your mom didn't go to the academy originally. That's her first sensei… _Orochimaru_." He said slowly, wondering whether he would regret this later.

"Weren't you her sensei?" Emiko asked. "And I swear she knew Iruka sensei from the academy…"

Hikari handed the photo to his father. "No way, Dad's so much younger… I didn't realize Mom was a Tsunade Sama…"

"She's not…" Kakashi said to Hikari, then to Emiko. "I trained her later."

"Wait-" Emiko interrupted. "You and Mom won't let me graduate from the academy early, but she didn't even _go_ to the academy? That's so unfair! You were a Genin at age six!"

Emiko stood up and scowled at her father. This was a common argument in their home. Why wasn't she allowed to graduate early? She was talented enough, she could have graduated when she was six too, but her parents forbade it. It hadn't been as bad when she and Hikari could go to school together, but now that he was 12 and graduated it seemed so unfair that she had to keep attending with all those baby losers. And now, she learns that her Mom didn't even attend the academy. It was such a double standard!

"Emiko…" Kakashi bent down to her level and put a hand on his daughter's shoulder. "It was a different time then. We've told you, no one needs to graduate early anymore. Just enjoy being a kid." He smiled at her; she swatted his hand off.

Kakashi sighed. This storage cleaning with preteens was more than he had signed up for...

"Come on, let's finish this up…" Kakashi said as he stood up to go back to organizing the boxes.

* * *

"Alrighty kids, thanks for your help. That wasn't too bad, huh?" Kakashi asked as he dusted his hands from the last garbage box. His children's silent looks answered the question for him. He tried to figure out how to lighten the mood.

"Ja… why don't we play a round of Samurai and Ninja?"

"Come on Dad, that's a little kids game." Emiko grumbled.

"... I always liked that game…" Kakashi said to himself, disappointed in his children's lack of enthusiasm.

"Well yeah, probably 'cause you were playing with Mom as your babysitter…" Hikari said just loud enough for his sister to hear.

"Gross…" Emiko replied.

"Huh?" Kakashi asked.

"Nothing!" His kids said in unison.

"Dad if it's okay, I just need to relax for a bit." Hikari said. He plucked a long stock of grain and went over to climb the tree in front of their house..

"Yeah, I guess that's fine…" Kakashi said. He looked as though he wanted to say something else but went against it as he slumped back to the house defeated.

"Doesn't it seem unfair to you?" Emiko said to her brother. She sat below the tree Hikari was perched on.

Hikari was chewing on the bottom of the grain stock. He was only half paying attention to his sister as she sat, still looking at those photos.

"Huh?" he replied.

"Come on Hikari! You could be a chunin or even a jounin by now and that doesn't bother you?"

"Not really… I mean dad's right. There's no point in worrying about that when the world is peaceful. It's a good thing."

"Ugh! What about these photos, huh? They are definitely hiding something from us…"

Hikari looked over to his sister with a bored look. "Emi… It's not that big of a deal. If Mom lies about her age who cares..."

Her brother was incorrigible. Emiko looked at the photo with her Mom and her mother's sensei, _Orochimaru_. She wondered who he was and why she had never heard about him.

_I bet he would train me… I'd show him. I'd be a great student, even better than Mom…_

Emiko stood up and began walking towards the center of town.

"Where are you off to?" Hikari asked.

"I'm going to hang out with Boruto." Emiko replied as she continued forward.

"Tell him 'hi' for me…" Hikari said lazily as he closed his eyes.

* * *

"I'm down… but why are you doing this again?" Boruto asked.

Emiko tried to remain patient.

"I just need some information on my mom's old sensei."

"Why not just ask my dad for it?" Boruto asked.

"Because- if he tells my parents then it ruins the surprise for my mom's birthday…"

Emiko had asked Boruto if he would create a distraction for his father, the current Hokage, so that he would leave his office just long enough for her to look at some ninja files. Since Boruto was always ready to stir up some trouble it hadn't taken much convincing.

32 minutes later Boruto had successfully lit something on fire down the hallway which had required his father's attendance. Emiko had slipped into Naruto's office during the scuttle. Since Emiko's father had also been Hokage when she was younger she remembered where the folders were kept. With any luck they would be in the same place.

_Bingo._

Emiko looked through the files and found one with the name Orochimaru that was well-worn. Whoever he was he was obviously important at some point. As she scanned through it there was one thing that stood out to her, the word _Rogue._

_Who was this guy?_

A small paper fell out the back of the folder. On it was a crudely drawn map and on the back was the word "here".

She smiled to herself as a plan laid itself out in her mind. A Rogue ninja wouldn't care about the academy or the stupid rules that accompanied this village.

* * *

"I am exhausted." Ren said as she walked into the front door. Her hair was in her face and her arms were spilling with groceries. She looked over to her husband who was rising from the kitchen table to assist her with the bags. "Next time, I'm staying with the kids, and I'll let you run the errands."

"Deal." Kakashi too eagerly replied.

"Uh oh, how'd the storage go?" Ren asked. They put the bags on the kitchen table and began unpacking the goods into various cupboards.

"Ahh…. you know Emi."

"Mmm, the usual?"

"Yeah."

They heard the front door open, and Hikari walked in. "Hey Mom." he said disheartenedly.

"How was your…. evening?" Ren asked as he came close. She kissed the top of his head, he would soon be too tall for that she reckoned.

"Fine..." He said. Hikari sat down at the table and put his head in his hands. His parents looked at each other; both knowing that their son's tone implied anything but 'fine'. Ren gave a silent nod to Kakashi, implying that he should go first.

Kakashi sat down next to his son. "So… ah, what did you guys end up doing?" He looked up to his wife for help. Ren raised her shoulders and made an "I don't know" face. She then proceeded to continue to unpack the groceries.

Hikari sighed. "I went to Sarada's house, with flowers. I thought I'd ask her to take a walk with me,- like what you were telling me today- when you proposed to Mom."

"Yeah?" Kakashi replied, putting an arm on his son's back.

Ren gave Kakashi a stern face from behind the cupboards where she was putting away sugar. She mouthed "You gave him proposal advice?!".

"I did not." He mouthed back, although the mask made it hard to see.

"He's twelve!" She mouthed back.

Hikari continued. "Her mom opened the door, and called for Sarada." He then sighed. "But Sarada refused. I heard her from the living area say she's not interested… and to go away." He paused for a few moments, thinking his parents would reply. When they didn't he spoke once more.

"Why is love so hard?" Hikari lifted up his head. He looked between his parents who were pantomiming illegible words to each other across the room.

He sighed again. "I'm going to my room."

"Wait, we were listening!" Ren called, but Hikari went to his room and closed the door.

Ren scowled at Kakashi.

"All those years of reading Makeout Paradise… I bet it's your fault he's a hopeless romantic." Ren said.

"Hey I'm not the one whose parents were... what did you call them, "Romo and Juritsu"?" He replied.

Ren laughed, disarmed by his poor English, " _Romeo and Juliet_. Good guess though." They both smiled.

"That poor boy…" She followed up as she looked at his door.

Ren shook her head, moved over to the sink and washed her hands.

"I think I'll start dinner now. Do you know where Emi is?" Ren asked.

Kakashi scratched his face and stood up. "Boruto's, I think."

"Hmm… It's getting late, I hope she'll be home soon." Ren replied. "You said she had one of her usual arguments while cleaning the storage, why?" Ren said. She chopped the vegetables and started boiling the water on the stove.

"Ooo, saury tonight, my favorite..." He stood up and walked to be behind Ren as she pulled out the fish to get a closer look.

"I really should have you cook it. You're much better than I am at it." Ren said.

He grabbed a small carrot from her vegetable pile and pulled the mask down to put it in his mouth before continuing. "I like how you do it." he mumbled.

"Anyway, you were saying about Emi?" Ren reminded him.

"Mm." He chewed the carrot. "She came across some old photos of us. Well- specifically a photo of you and Orochimaru."

Ren stopped chopping. "What did you tell her?"

"Just that you were trained by him…" He reached for more carrots. Ren turned to face her husband, not yet satisfied with the answer.

"What, you want a carrot?" He asked, putting one close to her mouth with a mysterious smile on his face.

Hikari's door opened as he exited to go to the bathroom. He took one look at his parents position, standing close, Dad attempting to feed his mom while smiling. He shook his head with disapproval.

"Must you mock me with what I can't have?..." Hikari said, disappointed in his parents.

Ren and Kakashi averted their eyes towards their son, frozen in their precarious position.

Hikari continued to shake his head as he went to the bathroom and closed the door.

"... Maybe it was Makeout Paradise…" Kakashi mumbled.

"Wait, that's all you said?" Ren said, pushing the carrot out of her face. "She didn't ask about… _him_?"

"No, she was just upset that you skipped the academy and were privately trained."

An eerie feeling came over Ren. "Kakashi, I think it's time... we have that chat with them."

" _The_ chat?" Kakashi said, confused with half a carrot in his mouth.

"Focus... Not _the_ chat. Heaven knows your son could not handle that at the moment…" She brushed his hair out of his eyes. "I mean the chat about who I am and where I come from."

Kakashi looked at his wife for a moment as he chewed the carrot. "Yeah, I've been thinking that it is about time for that too."

Ren continued to cook dinner, but as time passed and Emiko still didn't return home she got more nervous. After an hour she couldn't hold up dinner any longer. With her son and husband sitting across the table, she decided to call Hinata and make sure that Emiko was on her way home.

"Moshi moshi, Hi Hinata. How are you? Would you mind sending Emi home?"

Kakashi listened from the table. Ren was twirling the phone cord around her finger nervously.

"She hasn't been there since the afternoon?" The nervousness was noticeable in her voice. "Mm… Does Boruto know where she might have gone?"

After a moment Ren pulled her ear away from the receiver as a loud sound was heard in the Uzumaki household. After some garbled mumbling Hinata finally replied.

Ren's face remained calm, but her eyes widened as she heard Hinata's response.

The phone dropped.

* * *

Emiko walked through the dark forest. Most people would not be able to see, but she was not most people, and with her Sharingan activated she had no problems.

Emiko knew she was close to the location, she could sense a large amount of chakra in the area. As she neared what looked like a cabin in the woods she sensed a person following her. As she turned around to face the person, she called out. "I know you're there. Why don't you show yourself?"

Emiko was surprised to see a white haired boy around her age walk out from the bushes behind her. He had long sleeves on his kimono and yellow eyes. They looked very similar to the eyes of this Orochimaru she was looking for.

"Do you know Orochimaru?" She asked. Emiko didn't care much for social niceties.

The boy looked at her curiously, he had the hint of a smile on his face. "I do." He replied.

"I have some business to discuss with him. Can you take me to him?"

The boy seemed to consider only for a moment why a young girl such as herself would have business with Orochimaru. He then nodded and began walking towards the cabin. Emiko watched him carefully and followed him from behind. She was aware that this could be a trap and didn't want to get too close.

He went into the cabin. Emiko stood at the doorway and looked in before entering. It was one room and very small. There was a rocking chair in one corner, and a window with no glass, but besides that it was empty. The white haired boy kneeled down and opened what could only be a trap door from the ground. As he pulled open the door Emiko saw a ladder lead to a dark dwelling below.

"That seems… too easy." She said out loud. "Certainly there's no reason to have a secret underground hideout if it's that easy to enter?"

The boy smiled. "Well, if you open it wrong you'll likely lose your head." His eyes went to the window in the cabin where presumably weapons were to strike if activated. _That explained why there was no glass._

He continued."Although that's only to dissuade common thieves. It's no secret what's here. Your father knew much about it."

"You know my father?" Emiko said, though not surprised.

"Not personally, but hard not to know of the 6th Hokage."

"Hm."

Emiko stared at the entry. Her sharingan saw nothing suspicious besides the obvious. If this boy was telling a lie, he seemed well aware that he would suffer the consequence of Kakashi Hatake. Besides she was here to meet her mother's sensei, surely he wouldn't harm her daughter?

Emiko decided to enter. Afterall if something came she figured she could deal with it. She followed after the boy down the ladder. They landed on what looked like a dirt floor. To her right a river was flowing, and they looked to be in a long hallway of sorts. There were luminous vines lining the hallways which provided an overall blue-green glow. Rather than being eerie, it made the walkway seem quite magical.

Emiko walked towards the wall staring at the vines.

"Your mother helped create that." The boy said.

"... She did?" Emiko was surprised.

He nodded. "My parent was trying to find a way to light his other hideouts without using gas lamps."

"Your _paren_ t, is that Orochimaru?"

"Yes."

"May I touch it?" Emiko asked.

"Douzo."

Emiko touched the vine. "So many things I never knew about my mother…" She said out loud unintentionally.

"Come this way." He pulled a string closing the latch above them, and walked away from the ladder where they entered.

Emiko followed behind him. "What is your name?" She asked since he obviously knew more than she did.

"Mitsuki. And you are _Emiko_?"

"Mm." she replied. "... How do you know… all of this?"

"From my parent of course, and… people watching. I've learned a lot from seeing what you and your classmates do."

Emiko thought he was a strange kid. They continued their stroll and the floor changed to stone. They passed a room filled to the brim with books and scrolls. Emiko couldn't help but stare.

"Aw this is the library." Mitsuki, noting her interest, announced.

"It's not like any library I have ever seen." A quick glance let Emiko know that there were more than just a few forbidden scrolls in this hall. "... fascinating."

"You can wait in this room. I'll make Orochimaru aware." Mitsuki said. He exited the room, Emiko remained standing while she waited. She observed things throughout the walls with her sharingan, paying close attention to the layout of the hideout. It was incredible. Hidden traps and doorways everywhere. Her mother, the goodie-two-shoes had really trained with this man?

She didn't wait for more than a few minutes before Orochimaru entered.

Emiko knew it was him from the moment he stepped in. He looked exactly as he did in the photo although he was wearing a white kimono rather than traditional jounin gear. Perhaps her mom's secret to anti-aging lied with her sensei. He had a smile stretched out across his face, as if he knew a secret no one else did.

"Emiko Hatake, what brings you here?"

* * *

"Ren, please let me go get her." Kakashi pleaded quietly to his wife as they stood at the entrance of the village.

She placed a hand on her husband's cheek. "I've got to do this. You know that." They both knew that if anyone had a chance of negotiating with Orochimaru successfully it would be her, and her alone.

Kakashi placed his hand on top of hers lacing the fingers through. Ren knew he blamed himself for their daughter running away, and the experiences from his past made him especially nervous for the welfare of his family.

"Plus if she isn't there… I need you to check the surrounding area in case..." Ren couldn't finish the thought. "I need to go. I'll bring her back."

* * *

Emiko bowed deeply to be polite. "Orochimaru sama, I've come to petition you to train me in the ninja way. I would be honored to learn from you."

Mitsuki, who was standing behind Orochimaru raised his eyebrows with the forward request. Orochimaru remained expressionless, though his eyes dilated some.

Emiko came up from her bow.

"How is your mother Emiko chan? It's been several years since I have talked with her..." Orochimaru asked, ignoring her question.

"She is… good, sir." Emiko was caught off guard by the blatant dismissal of her question.

"I'm glad to hear that." He smiled.

Emiko continued. "Sir, with the right opportunity, I promise I would make it worth your-" Orochimaru put a hand up to silence her.

"Please," He paused. "- follow me Emiko." Orochimaru exited the small room and went down the dim hallway. Emiko followed him closeby walking next to his son instride.

As they neared the end of the hall it branched out like the root of a tree in many directions. They took the most far right path until they came across a laboratory. Emiko couldn't help but audibly gasp at the grandness of it all.

There were tall cylinders filled with mysterious liquids and what could only be pickled parts of various land and sea creatures. "Fascinating…" She said again out loud as her eyes scanned the large room.

"Do you like to learn about science?" Orochimaru asked.

"... I just like to learn about everything…" Emiko replied, focusing on bottles of strange liquids with fish gills.

Orohimaru smiled as he continued forward. "We are the same in that regard."

Emiko smiled within herself; happy to finally meet someone who understood. She deactivated her Sharingan confident now that there was no immediate threat.

Orochimaru led her and Mitsuki into a different room with a bookshelf and a table. It was much more comfortable than the other rooms she had seen.

"Please, take a seat." Orochimaru instructed her as he kneeled on one side of the table. Emiko nodded and kneeled on the floor across from him. "Mitsuki, would you mind grabbing some tea for our guest?" The boy was standing to the side. He nodded and left the room from a different exit than they had entered in from.

"You seem to be able to hold your sharingan for a long time without tiring yourself out." Orochimaru began.

"Yes, I have quite high chakra levels." Emiko now sensed she was being interviewed for the position. "I have practiced using it for long periods of time ever since it was activated."

"How long ago did you activate your sharingan?"

"I was six years old the first time in occured. I'm ten now, for reference..."

"Hm. You are the same age as my son. That's quite young for a sharingan… Interesting. Normally the activation of a sharingan at that age is coupled with a traumatic life experience. Did something of that nature occur?"

"No, sir. Unless you count the teasing of my brother as traumatic." She smiled out the side of her mouth thinking of the incident with Hikari.

"Interesting…"

Mitsuki brought back the tea in a kettle with some empty cups and crackers on a small black tray. He placed it in the middle of the two of them then stood up and moved himself near the wall. Orochimaru poured a cup for Emiko and then a cup for himself.

"Thank you." She said. "If I may… How did you meet my mother, Orochimaru sama?"

Orochimaru seemed to think about her question deeply as he brought his tea cup to his mouth.

"...Has she not told you herself?" He asked in return.

Emiko looked down to her cup, embarrassed at her lack of knowledge.

"If not… " Orochimaru continued. "it's not really my place to say…" He took a sip.

"There is a lot about my parents' past that I don't know… but I swear I will be the best student if you take me on." Emiko's voice was passionate.

Orochimaru stared into her eyes. He seemed to consider her offer carefully. After a few moments he spoke.

"I'm afraid it's not possible. Your mother would never approve and… even if she did -" He paused for a moment. "- I guarantee your father would do everything in his power to stop it..." he put the tea cup to his lips.

Emiko felt her heart drop. How had her parents reached their damming influence even to a rogue ninja of the leaf? How was she ever going to escape this town, these people… How was she ever going to be anything but second best? She fought the tears that were daring to come to her eyes.

Orochimaru drank his tea all while carefully observing the young girl's reaction. When he finished, he looked at one of the exits, placed the cup on the table and excused himself to her for other business. He stood up and placed a hand on his son's shoulder whispering some directions and exited the room.

Mitsuki watched the girl as the first tear fell down her face. It was not often he interacted with children his own age. He walked to where Orochimaru had been sitting and kneeled down in his place. Mitsuki reached into his long sleeve, pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to the crying girl.

She took the handkerchief silently and wiped her eyes, ashamed to be caught crying like a young child.

Mitsuki spoke. "I'm sorry you won't be training with us. I was looking forward to the company."

Emiko looked up at the boy and finished dabbing away the last of her tears. She spoke softly. "How ironic… you have the life I always wanted." She laughed to herself. "Not distracted by stupid people, you can just focus on mastering your studies without anyone bothering you...or comparing you."

Mitsuki topped off Emiko's tea and handed it back to her. "Aw… but there is much to be learned even from stupid people. Already from watching you and your classmates I have learned so much."

"Oh, and what have you learned?" Emiko inquired sarcastically.

"For example- the spirit of humans. You in particular, despite lacking the genius natural skill of your brother, have far exceeded his level of growth at the academy. That's not something you can learn without having other people around."

"Are you calling me stupid?"

"Yes." Mitsuki said pleasantly.

Emiko was shocked but not offended at his honesty.

"And why am I stupid?" she asked calmly.

"You are stupid because you think that your parents are comparing you to themselves or your brother. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Yet- you push them away over a nonexistent problem."

Emiko's face showed her surprise. No one had ever framed her fears so concisely. "Yeah well you try being part of a super talented family like mine…"

"I have." replied readily.

Emiko smiled at the strange boy. He was weird, but he offered a refreshing perspective.

"Maybe you're right…"

* * *

Ren reached and looked at her crudely drawn map from Naruto to compare the image of the cabin to what was standing in front of her. Certainly Naruto's artistic skills were comparable to a three-year-olds but it was unlikely that any other cabin would be in the vicinity.

A chilly wind blew her towards the entrance. Ren paced forward quickly, her nerves wouldn't be still until her daughter was safe in her arms. Upon entering the lone cabin, with her Sharingan activated she checked for booby traps and disabled the obvious one before pulling the latch in the middle of the floor.

Had she been in a better mood she would have thought something about Orochimaru "losing his touch" with such an easy trick to find, but her thoughts were elsewhere.

Ren opened the latch wide. She looked down into the hole. Familiar smells hit her at once that both comforted and then unnerved her as she took in the floor plan with her sharingan. She jumped down the hole rather than use the ladder and landed on a dirt floor only about two meters below.

She stood up slowly feeling more like she was in a memory than reality. The hallways glowed green and she deliberately slowed her pace to not alert others as she walked down the long hallway.

Orochimaru was a creature of habit. While he purposely laid out his hideouts differently to confuse repeat offenders there was a pattern to the madness that only someone close to him would understand.

She hesitated only for a moment when she saw someone waiting at the end of one of the paths. She didn't need her sharingan to tell her who it was.

_Orochimaru._

As Ren got closer she saw his figure standing in a white kimono. She stopped walking once she was about a meter away from him.

"Hello there Ume, it's been a while."

"Indeed it has, Orochimaru." Ren remained composed. "My daughter… is she here?"

"She is."

"Is she… alright?"

Orochimaru took his time, then did a solitary nod.

Ren's stomach filled with relief knowing her daughter wasn't lying dead somewhere outside. Her stance relaxed some.

"Can I see her?"

He nodded and proceeded down the route of this hallway taking him the center of his lair.

Ren followed behind.

"You know she asked me to train her..." Orochimaru said.

Ren's anxiety returned.

"I turned her down, of course." Orochimaru's head turned to look at Ren as they walked. He smiled. "I figured her father wouldn't like that much."

"You turned her down?"

"Should I have not?" he asked.

"No… thank you. I'm just surprised and... grateful."

Orochimaru's smile disappeared. "Don't be. I'm a father myself nowadays. I understand."

Ren stopped walking.

Orochimaru stopped a few steps ahead and turned to look back at her.

"You're a father?" She was smiling.

"Is it so unbelievable?." He said with a mischievous smile across his face.

"You'll have to forgive me." Ren said. "I'm just happy for you." She blinked away her sharingan revealing her blue eyes.

They smiled at each other for a moment.

Orochimaru pointed his hand down the end of the laboratory indicating the entrance. "She's down here talking with my son."

Ren walked slowly and stood next to her former sensei. From his placement she could see into the entrance of the other room. Her daughter was indeed sitting across the table, back faced to Ren, talking to a young boy with familiar yellow eyes. They seemed to be chatting, even laughing from the looks of it.

"I've never seen her so..." Ren said. Not sure what word to finish with.

"Yes, it seems they've become fast friends." Orochimaru said.

They stood there a moment both watching their children interact the way only a parent could.

"Children are unpredictable aren't they? I engineered Mituski to have the perfect DNA, and yet all he wants is to join the academy in Konoha." Orochimaru said.

"Will you let him?" Ren asked.

"...If it's possible." Orochimaru responded.

Ren looked away from her daughter to Orochimaru. "I'll have a word with Naruto and see what I can do."

"I would appreciate that."

She smiled at him and then walked towards Emiko. Mitsuki noticed her first and stood up upon her entry to the room. He bowed to Ren and Emiko turned around.

"Mom?" Emiko stood quickly and after a moment's hesitation threw her arms around her mother. Ren was surprised at the contact. She put both of her arms around her young daughter and pulled her close, so relieved to see her safe and sound. "I'm sorry mom…" Ren heard Emiko say softly, her voice muffled by the fabric of Ren's clothing.

She stroked her daughter's hair. "I know… It's okay."

Emiko loosened her grip around her mother and stepped back from the embrace. They smiled at one another.

"This is my friend, Mitsuki."

"Pleasure to meet you ma'am." Mitsuki said and bowed again to Ren.

Ren lowered her head briefly. "Nice to meet you too Mitsuki. Thank you for taking care of my Emiko."

"Anytime." He replied. His eyes closed with his smile.

"Emi, we need to let Dad know you are okay." Ren said.

Orochimaru walked into the room. "And tell him he can stop hovering over my hideout..."

Emiko turned to Orochimaru. "Thank you Orochimaru sama. I intend to plead my case again in the future, and I hope you will consider it seriously then." She bowed deeply.

He nodded with a smile. "I look forward to hearing it."

Emiko returned the smile. She turned to face Mitsuki. "Mitsuki, see you. And next time we'll see who's really the stupid one." She exited the room.

Orochimaru and Ren looked at each other confused at the context. Ren straightened herself. She looked out the door and then back at Orochimaru.

"Till next time, Orochimaru." Ren said.

"Till next time." Orochimaru replied, standing by his son and putting an arm on his shoulder. Ren smiled and followed her daughter out the exit.

Ren walked down the hallway and caught up with her daughter. As they strolled side by side Ren felt the urge to apologize.

"Emi… I'm sorry. For not telling you more of the truth sooner. I never meant for you to find out this way." Emiko looked at her mother thoughtfully. Ren continued, "I know you hate the academy, and I'm willing to figure out a compromise so you aren't miserable..."

"It's okay Mom." Emiko looked down the hallway to see Mitsuki waving at her. "I don't think I'll mind the academy so much now."

* * *

"Dad!" Emiko called to her father as she exited the cabin. He was standing against a tree. She ran towards him. He dropped his kunai, scooped her in his arms and held her near his chest like she was a little girl again.

"Thank goodness you are alright. Never do that to me again, Emi." He said with a sternness she had never heard before in his voice.

"I'm sorry dad, I didn't mean to make you worry…" She put both her arms around his neck and held him tight.

Ren climbed out of the hole and made her way through the darkness towards her husband and daughter.

Kakashi shifted Emi to put her feet on the ground once again, and placed his other arm around his wife pulling her close and kissing the top of her forehead. After a moment Ren pulled back from the embrace. She looked at her exhausted husband and young daughter. She brushed the stray hairs out of Emiko's face.

"Let's go home."

* * *

"So, as we all know yesterday was…"

"Dramatic?" Hikari answered for his father. Emiko and Hikari were sitting on a couch opposite of their two parents. The day was bright outside and light shone through their living room giving it a nice glow.

"...Dramatic. Ja, that works." Kakashi continued. "So Mom and I were talking…" He put his hand on Ren's leg, " and we think it's time for you two to … uh... know some things."

"Oh gross. Dad, are you trying to give us _the talk_?" Emiko asked. Her eyes horrified.

Ren laughed. "No... No. Not at all." Ren put her hand over her husband's.

"No, what Dad's trying to say is, it's time for you to know about my past." She looked at her husband and smiled, "...I guess our past."

The children leaned closer and opened their eyes wide.

"This story begins with a girl who finds herself in a world from her childhood she thought was only fictional..."

\- The End -


End file.
